Does anybody know the cold hardiness of a Chinese Windmill Palm? I heard they were very cold hardy, so I took mine and placed it outside. I live in massachusetts and my windmill palm is a SEEDLING with 2-3 leaves, well I put it outside and for a few weeks it was freezing around here, 30s and 40s. at night it got WELL below freezing EVERY night. One day it was only 3 degrees all day long. I looked at it and the whole thing was frozen outside in its pot. I took it back in a few days ago and it unthawed and there is NOTHING wrong with it. no leaves are gone, no browning or yellow and it looks fine! is this strange or is that just how cold hardy it is? i thought for sure it would die!
It may be too early to tell yet. Very often cold damage - particularly frost damage to roots in a pot - does not become apparent until some time (weeks, even months) after the damage is done. The sudden rise in temperature on bringing it back inside won't have helped, either.
Continue to pull on the centre frond to see if it pulls out. You don't need to tug hard. If it pulls out then the damage has been done. Keep it dry and just above the freezing mark and do not change the humidity level. If it was wet and humid and cool then do not bring it inside to a warm dry spot.
Good advise all around for ya F1aReD. These guys won't steer ya wrong. Wes, good to have you around on these boards. I never go to the Northwest palms board anymore. I recall little or no moderation there and it got nasty on many ocassions. Hopefully things are better there now? Well best to you this Christmas and New year. Michael F ... best holiday wishes to you. Always good to have your expertise on the forum. Cheers! P.S. I see Dan has a new Xmas light display this year. No plams in his front yard yet though. haha! Cheers, LPN (Barrie)
"Placed outside" does sound like it was in a little pot. If this one comes back or you try another plant in the ground, in spring, and mulch afterward.
Our understanding is that Trachycarpus fortunei is hardy to 5 degrees, but only with some maturity. Yours is very young and would require protection in weather below 25, both to pot and stem/leaf. Protection in this case might include placing a polyfilm bag or sheet-arrangement over it.
They can tolerate temperatures well below 5°. A group in Bulgaria have survived -27.5° in January 1993, but they are in the ground, not in pots. Read about them here: http://www.polarpalm.net/
These Bulgarian palms are an exception, not the rule. 99.9% of what most gardeners would encounter with their Windmail palms, and the vast majority of Windmills won't manage temps that cold (-27.5f). Another factor is repeated or prolonged exposure to severe freezing. That's why folks in Edmonton, Denver, Billings, etc can't grow Trachycarpus successfully outdoors. If you're in the Willamette valley and down through Medford / Grants Pass, or along the coast, no problem for Windmill palms. Cheers, LPN.
