Z2003 Louisiana Dwarf Cold Hardy Palmetto Palm ( Sabal Minor )
A short palmetto palm growing only about 6 ft. tall with large blue-green fan leaves. An easy to grow palm. This palm can be grown much farther North than most palm species.
Young palms can be grown outside with ease and established palms, ( grown inside in pots the first few years, then transplanted outside ) can be grown in zone 6, and it has been suggested that established plants could even be grown as far North as zone 5 with foliage loss in Winter and re-growth in Sping.
10 seeds per pack. Price per pack: $5.95
SAW PALMETTO PALM Serenoa repens
Saw palmetto is a small hardy fan palm whose stem usually remains below ground or runs just along the surface. In some cases, it develops an erect or arching trunk that may lift the whorl of leaves 2'-8' above ground. The palmate leaves are 2'-3' across and green or bluish green. The cluster of leaves gets about 4'-6' high with a similar spread. In the wild, saw palmetto often grows in clumps 20 or more feet in diameter. The petioles (leaf stems) are about 2' long and sharply saw-toothed. The fruits are round, black and about an inch in diameter. An especially attractive form with silvery-white leaves occurs along the Atlantic coast in Florida.
Saw palmetto occurs naturally on the coastal plain from South Carolina to southeastern Louisiana. It grows in a wide range of habitats from seaside sand dunes and dry scrub to moist forests, pine flatwoods and even wetlands. Saw palmetto can be the dominant ground cover in certain southeastern pine forests, sometimes covering hundreds of acres.
Culture: Once established, saw palmetto is virtually maintenance-free.
Light: Prefers full sun, but can tolerate partial sun.
Moisture: Tolerates drought but can also tolerate moderately moist soils.
Hardiness: Fully hardy to zone 7, this palm has been seen growing in zone 6, but does suffer foliage damage at 10 degrees F. and complete foliage loss at 3-5 degrees F.
Saw palmetto is a beautiful little palm and richly deserves a place in the ornamental landscape. The silver form is especially attractive. Plant saw palmettos in front of clumps of larger palms, or even underneath large palms. They look good massed in clumps in mixed borders, or as framing hedges. Use as accents to trees or in foundation plantings.
Features: The berries of saw palmetto are used as a treatment for Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia or enlarged prostate gland. They are also used as a diuretic to tone the bladder, improve urinary flow, and decrease urinary frequency. They may help prevent prostate cancer.
P76 Silver Saw Palmetto Palm. Beautiful silvery-white tinted fan-shaped leaves Package of 10 seeds $2.25
P77 Green Saw Palmetto Palm. Traditional Green fan-shaped leaves Package of 10 seeds $2.25
P41 Sabal Palmetto Palm Sabal palmetto.
The Florida state tree. This is an attractive palm
whose use is mostly outside as lawn decoration. It grows to 80 ft. tall with stiff, green
costapalmate leaves. Has a smooth trunk that will reach 18" in diameter. Very easy to
grow from seeds. It can be raised inside, but it will require much bright light.
Easily grown in zone 7 ounce established, it is suggested that established, protected plants may survive in zone 6b as well.
Package of 10 seeds $2.25
P52 Jelly Palm Butia capitata
This beautiful feather palm has long fronds that arch and recurve towards the ground from atop a thick stout trunk. The trunk can grow to 20’, but normally reaches 12’-15’ with a diameter of 1’-1½’. Typically, the old leaf stalks persist for years, although specimens with clean trunks are not uncommon. Leaves range from light green to bluish gray. The palm produces light orange fruits (often called pindo dates in the deep south). These palms vary in form. Specimens raised in dry and/or infertile soils tend to be smaller in stature with smaller leaves. Light also affects the plant’s form -- those grown in full sun are more compact. The orange fruits are edible and widely used to make a delicious jelly, thus the name.
Grown regularly in zone 8, this palm has been proven to survive 0° F. when heavily mulched and protected. Generally considered safe to grow in zone 7 if heavily protected, it is suspected it could survive zone 6 under certain conditions.
Package of
2 seeds $2.50
P75 Mexican Fan Palm Sky Duster Palm Washingtonia robusta This is the palm
shown in the backgrounds of television shows shot in Los Angeles. It is a tall thin palm
that grows to great heights very quickly. Outside, it can reach a height of 100 ft. or more.
Remarkably, it also makes a great inside plant. Has fan shaped small green leaves and
bears dark, glossy red seeds. It is drought tolerant and can be easily moved at any age.
Prefers full sun and tolerates 18 to 20 degrees F. Fairly fast growing and commonly available. 12 to 15 degrees will defoliate this species.
Package of
10seeds $2.25
Seed Packet #Z2501 Brahea armata - Blue Hesper Palm
It could be argued that this is the most impressive of the Braheas with
its thick and fissured grey trunk, and its crown of silvery blue,
sometimes almost white leaves that in moonlight take on an almost ghostly
appearance. In the wild it grows in arid canyons, sometimes with
Washingtonia, and manages to survive in incredibly dry conditions.
It tolerates down to about 18 to 20 degrees. 12 to 15 degrees will definitely damage the foliage of this species.
5 seeds per pack. Price per pack: $5.95
Seed Packet #Z2504 Nannorrhops ritchiana - Mazari Palm
Nannorrhops ritchiana, the Mazari palm, one of the very hardiest palms in
the world was, until recently, also one of the rarest in cultivation.
Finally, after several years of work, literally hundreds of faxes and
phone calls, and not least of all, a trip to Pakistan (not our favorite
holiday destination), we located what we hope will be a regular source of
seeds of this tough and attractive palm. Its high altitude desert origin
in Northern Pakistan and Afghanistan (to about 1700m/5600ft a.s.l.) gives
an indication of its requirements is: hot, dry, and bright. Mature
Nannorrhops ritchiana are successfully cultivated in such diverse places as
Florida, California, Texas, Italy, France, and Venezuela, indicating that
it will thrive in temperate areas just as well as in the cooler tropics.
In winter, if kept dry, it may resist temperatures as low as -20C (-4F).
With summer heat it is relatively fast growing, and will develop into a
large shrub with several short, erect trunks and very thick, blue-green,
leathery fan-shaped leaves. It is a palm which surely everyone will want
to have in their collections.
5 seeds per pack. Price per pack: $5.95
P11 Silver Saw Palm Acoelorrhaphe wrightii
A palm widely used in Florida for street decoration. It grows to a height of 20 ft. It has a slender trunk covered with brown fibers.
The leaves are fan shaped and a light green with a silver back. The seeds germinate
quickly and easily. This is good outdoor palm for mild climate areas.
It will tolerate high moisture conditions and temperatures to about 20 degrees. It prefers full sun.
Package of
10 seeds $2.25
Seed Packet #Z1930 Dwarf Yatay Palm Butia paraguayensis
An interesting and rare dwarf Butia, this palm rarely grows to more than 1.8m (6ft) tall. It has a short, slender trunk and strongly arching, blue-green leaves, with the leaflets held in a V-shape. This dwarf Butia is most useful as an ornamental palm in the temperate and subtropical garden where it will tolerate summer heat and extreme cold. Cold tolerant to 18-20° F.
Pack of 20 seeds $5.95
Seed Packet #Z2500 Caryota urens - Jaggery Palm, Toddy Palm
Did you know that many cultivated trees labeled Caryota urens are
actually misidentified? The true C. urens grows only in Southern India
and Sri Lanka and, despite popular belief, it is not commonly cultivated.
Therefore many cultivated trees are only called C. urens as it is the
easiest name to apply to a large, solitary Caryota in a genus that is in
desperate taxonomic confusion. What we believe to be the true C. urens is
a large tree with a thick and comparatively short trunk; and huge,
slightly ascending, rather flattish leaves (as opposed to more slender
trunked species with shorter, strongly tumbling leaf habit, such as C.
maxima and C. "Himalaya"). As our seeds come from C. urens' natural
habitat in S-India you can rest assured that it is true to name.
Taxonomic trouble aside, C. urens is a reliable and fast growing palm,
well suited to tropical as well as warm temperate climates.
Cold tolerant to about 22° F.
5 seeds per pack. Price per pack: $5.95
P28 Canary Island Date Palm Phoenix canariensis
From the Canary Islands off the Coast of Africa, this palm is widely grown as an ornamental tree. It is tolerant of cold and drought and can be easily raised from seeds if given heat. Outside, it will grow up to 60 ft. with a 3 ft. diameter trunk. Inside, its growth can be regulated by the size of container it is raised in. It has a distinctive spiky, architectural appearance that is a must for any home. It bears 2 in. long fruit that is orange when ripe. The old leaf scars on the trunk form diamond shaped patterns.
Tolerates cold to about 18 degrees and needs full sun. 12 to 15 degrees will damage the foliage.
Package of
10 seeds $2.25
#Z1995Senegal Date Palm Phoenix reclinata
A beautiful, clump forming palm whose trunks tend to lean outward, hence the name. Easy to grow indoors or out, will reach 30 ft. outdoors when mature. Attractive, leaf scarred trunks and ¾" brown fruits. Also called the African Date Palm.
Demands full sun and tolerates temperatures to 20 degrees or slightly lower.
10 seeds per pack. Price per pack: $5.95
P16 Queen Palm Syagrus romanzoffiana An excellent palm from Brazil. It withstands a
wide range of climates and can be raised outside in northern areas if protection is given.
The first simple leaves of this palm can be up to 3 ft. long. It will grow up to 60 ft.
outside. The trunk is long and slender and will bear distinctive old leaf scars that accents
its tropical look. The leaves are long and curving. Can be raised as a houseplant inside.
The Queen palm can tolerate to about 20 degrees, 17 degrees or colder will kill this species. It demands full sun.
Package of 10 seeds $2.25
Cold Hardy Bananas
Note: All banana leaves, even of the most cold hardy species, will be damaged by frost and killed outright by a hard freeze. But many underground rhizomes are much cold hardier than people realize. This means that that the underground root will sprout new growth in the Spring.
Seed Packet #Z2450 Darjeeling Banana Musa sikkimensis (= M. hookeri)
Wow! A rare and little known large banana species, new to cultivation, that sports a massive pseudo-trunk to 4,5m (14ft) tall and 45cm (18in.) in diameter., tinged with red, and purple new leaves and leaf-midribs. A percentage of plants even exhibits beautifully dark red mottled leaves.
The Darjeeling Banana is very hardy to cold (i.e. in the sense of Musa basjoo) coming, as it does, from mountain forests up to 2000m (6000ft) in the Himalayas of NE-India. It can easily be grown in zone 6.
First trials outdoors in the US, Britain, Germany and Switzerland have shown an excellent resistance to cold and frost. Like all bananas, it is extremely fast growing, given rich soil and an abundance of water. The fruits have a sweetish pulp but are hard and contain a few large seeds. An absolute novelty that shows great promise as an ornamental for the temperate as well as the cooler tropical garden. We think this plant that has more potential than any other cold tolerant Musa in cultivation at the moment.
5 seeds per pack. Price per pack: $5.95
Seed Packet #Z2093 Cold Hardy Chinese Dwarf Banana Musella lasiocarpa
Musella lasiocarpa is an exciting banana relative that comes from high
altitudes (to frosty 2800m / 9200ft!) in the Yunnan province in China.
The maximum height of the plant is only about 1.5m / 5ft, half of which
is a very stout, conical trunk, topped by a crown of handsome, slightly
glaucous, broad leaves. From early age, the rhizome produces many
suckers. The "flower", which is big and bright yellow, appears in its
second year, and grows upright at the top of the trunk. As the
inflorescence grows in size, tiny 'bananas' begin to appear under each
bract which curls back to reveal the fruits. Unfortunately inedible, the
2" long bananas each contain dozens of small, shiny jet black seeds. The
seed requires cool stratification (abt. 5°C) but then germinates easily,
and subsequent seedling growth is as you might expect, very fast. Musella
appreciates heavy watering and feeding and a place in full sun. It will
flourish in all climates from cool tropical down to temperate, where it
will be found to be root hardy, enduring even cold winters with its
underground rhizome, just like the well known "Hardy Banana", Musa
basjoo. It also makes a perfect conservatory plant which will be a true
conversation piece that certainly will not outgrow its location.
Easily survives zone 6 winters when mulched heavily.
5 seeds per pack. Price per pack: $5.95
Bulk Pack of 25 seeds. $17.95
Seed Packet # Z2306 Seed Name: Velvet Banana Musa velutina
Good container type of banana with dark green leaf blades to 3 ft. Produces erect spikes of white flowers, followed by softly hairy, pink fruit. Can easily be grown in zone 9 for fruits, but can survive zone 7, maybe even zone 6 for foliage plants..
Price per pack: $4.95 10 seeds
Bulk Pack of 50 seeds: $17.95
Seed Packet #Z2115 Giant Nepal Banana Ensete glaucum
This exciting but little-known banana relative is also known as Musa nepalensis and Ensete
giganteum, hinting at the plants giant size. It grows in China (Yunnan 800-1100m a.s.l.),
Nepal, India, Burma, Thailand and possibly also in Tibet, Indonesia, Malaysia and Papua
New Guinea. It has a thick, waxy and blue, solitary trunk, huge bluish leaves up to
10ft/3m long, and a huge nodding banana-producing inflorescence. It is extremely fast
growing and so requires a good supply of fertilizer and water and is best planted in rich
soil. In cold climates it would make an astonishing bedding plant during the Summer.
Hardy to zone 7 with heavy mulching.
5 seeds per pack. Price per pack: $5.95
Cold Hardy Yuccas
Seed Packet #Z1494Blue Yucca Yucca rigida
A beautiful xeriscape plant growing 10-15 ft. outside or can be container raised. Hardy to zone 6b and withstands partial shade. Wonderful spikes of white flowers in spring. Excellent for rock gardens as it has very low water requirements.
Very similar to Y. rostrata except with broader leaves and slightly hardier cold tolerance. Stunning blue leaves from a dense rosette to create a most wonderful specimen. Extremely rare in cultivation
10 seeds. Price per pack: $3.95
Seed Packet #2070Spanish Bayonet Yucca aloifolia
Spanish bayonet has an erect trunk, 3-5" in diameter, reaching up to 5-20' tall before it becomes top heavy and topples over. When that happens, the tip turns upward and keeps on growing. The trunk is armed with sharp pointed straplike leaves each about 2' long. The young leaves near the growing tip stand erect; older ones are reflexed downward, and the oldest wither and turn brown, hanging around the lower trunk like an Hawaiian skirt. Eventually the tip of the trunk develops a 2' long spike of white, purplish-tinged flowers, each blossom about 4" across. After flowering, the trunk stops growing, but one or more lateral buds are soon formed, and the uppermost becomes a new terminal shoot. Any other buds become branches, but these are usually few, and the plant has an open, airy habit. Spanish bayonet also produces new buds, or offshoots, near the base of the trunk, forming a thicket. Cold hardy to 6b with protection.
10 seeds per pack Price per pack: $3.95