I just put one in - see the attached pic! Is this a good plan for a place to put it? I have seen some mexican fan palms get massive heads but small trunks ... is there anything I can do so ensure that the trunk will be tall? I don't want a bush of a palm! One other question: How fast do these grow? For example: how long until I expect it to be 15 feet or so?
Makes a big top of stiff leaves, if it likes the location it will soon be in the way there. Maybe put it at the corner of the house instead, at the other end of the same bed.
i was so proud of that one too! Is there a way that I could possibly just prune it until it gets taller than our patio?
You'll have to mate, otherwise you will have to battle your way out or in of the jungle each time....lol. Its the same at my house in the back, with my winding paths. Young palms, cordylines and other tropicals hinder your progress slightly, but I don't care its part of the feel....until I get my rainforest canopy. But mine isn't at the front door though... Ed
ok - i just wanted to make sure i *could* prune it without killing it. I don't mind it not having a full top until it goes higher than the porch. I just wanted to make sure I could do that.
well, señor, it takes about 10 years for these guys to get to fifteen feet so you're about a third of the way there it seems...as far as where it is, it's pretty close to the house and may end up bending a little ourward but i don't think too much...as far as the pruning, keep it light...try not to take off green fronds cause they give the palm nutrition until they're completely brown...as a general rule, only prune the brown (unless you absolutely have to...other than that, nice job...it's cool you're adding new stuff to your home...a bottle would have actually looked nice there but that's right, you want a tall tree...and you shall have one!...don't forget, these guys are nicknamed 'Skydusters'...enjoy~
"WASHINGTONIA... These fast-growing fan palms are too tall for most suburban gardens; they are best suited to large properties, avenues, parkways. The two species often hybridize if growing near each other... W. filifera. MEXICAN FAN PALM. From Mexico. Hardy to 20F/-7C. To 100 ft. tall, 10 ft. wide..." --Sunset WESTERN GARDEN BOOK
Hello mouschi, What you have shown in you initial pics is clearly Washingtonia robusta (Mexican fan palm) - not "W. filifera". Cheers, LPN.
