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First published on 2/27/10
Queen Palms Don't Rule in Florida
by Ginny Stibolt
No doubt the common name for the queen palm (Syagrus
romanzoffiana) arises from the regal appearance of a healthy
specimen with its long feathery fronds that droop in a graceful arch.
They are readily available from big box stores and nurseries all
over Florida, but why? There are definite problems with this palm in Florida's
landscapes.
 They are
Not Cold Tolerant:
From Brazil and neighboring South American
countries, the queen palm is tropical in nature and is killed when
temperatures fall below 25 degrees Fahrenheit, as so many folks living
in northern Florida and some of central Florida discovered this winter. Our sustained cold snap in January and a shorter one in February
killed most of the queen palms. Even
in central Florida, many queens bit the dust. You can trim back dead leaves and wait to see if there is any new
growth in the next month or so. As
with any palm, if the growing tip has been damaged, it's dead. So don't expect to find new growth from the stump.
They are Not Wind Resistant:
Since 1992 when Andrew struck, and during
subsequent hurricane-rich years such as 2004 with its four hurricanes
(Bonny . Charlie, Frances and Jeanne), careful analysis of the trees
that were felled by the winds showed that the queen palm was on the list
of the trees most vulnerable to wind damage. It was the one of two palms on the list--the other is Mexican fan
palm (Washingtonia robusta). Most palms have excellent wind resistance because of their
fibrous nature--they don't have annual rings and stiff wood like other
trees.
They are Not Drought Tolerant:
Palms develop a whole new root system upon
transplanting. Most
homeowners (and many professional landscapers) do not water palms enough after planting and they fail to get
a good start. (I provided irrigation needs and other
details in my article: Trees
and Shrubs: the "Bones" of Your Landscape.) Even after establishment,
many queen palms have a hard time adjusting to our 7-month long dry
seasons. As a result, many
of these palms are likely to struggle and then have shortened life
spans. This is not a pretty sight as the fronds die off quickly.
They are Invasive in Central and Southern Florida:
The queen palm produces prodigious numbers of
seeds, which make a smelly mess in the landscape. All those seeds germinate at a high enough rate that queen palms
are on invasive plant list II for Florida--they have negatively
altered some of Florida's wild spaces with the potential to become
widely invasive.
Find Something Better to Replace your Dead Queens:
So as you begin to work on your cold damaged
landscape, don't just replant the same trees that have failed; find more
sustainable alternatives. Our native cabbage palm (Sabal
palmetto) is an excellent choice and is available planted in your
yard at a fairly low price. Also, across Florida there are dozens
of garden fests this spring, so you should be able to find one not too
far away. Do
your research in these pleasant and fact-filled settings, and find some
replacements for the dead queens in your landscape that will thrive in
our climate and not threaten Florida's wild spaces. In
northeast Florida there are two opportunities to find excellent native
trees and shrubs. On March
6th, Duval County Extension Service and others are putting on
"A Day of Gardening" http://duval.ifas.ufl.edu/.
(You need to register by March 2nd and it costs $10, which
includes lunch and presentations.) On Amelia Island on March 6th and
March 7th, the first Amelia Island Garden Show will have a wide variety
of vendors and speakers on both days. There is no charge for this event.
http://gardenshow.ameliaislandtdc.com/ (Full disclosure: I will be at this festival with James Loper in
his Reflections of Nature's
booth. So stop on by.)
Resources:
· Floridata's profile of the queen palm: www.floridata.com/ref/s/syag_rom.cfm
and the cabbage palm: www.floridata.com/ref/S/sab_palm.cfm
· University
of Florida/Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS)
have analyzed the trees that stood and those that fell:
www.ornamentaloutlook.com/magazine/?storyid=450
· Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council has placed the queen
palm on its II Florida invasive list: www.fleppc.org
~ ~ ~
Ginny Stibolt is a naturalist and a
gardener with a master's degree in plant taxonomy. She's written a book,
Sustainable Gardening for Florida
for University Press of Florida—it will be available in Sept. 2009.
She’d like to hear
from readers who have suggestions and questions. After all, there are
more than a few transplanted gardeners here in northeast Florida trying
to figure out what works and what doesn’t in planting zone 8/9. You
may contact her or read more of her articles posted on her website: www.transplantedgardener.com.
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