With advances in global communication and exploration, palm trees have become more available and popular than ever before.  As a result, people in warm climates are trying palms recently introduced into cultivation, and even people in colder climates are attempting some of the hardier species.  eBay can be a great place to obtain palms to try, but there are a few things you should consider before placing your bid.

Sabal palmetto in the wild, Bald Head Island, N.C.

First, you need to determine if you're going to be growing this palm in the ground or in a pot.  If you plan on growing the palm in a pot, you'll need know only a few things:

• Is this palm suitable for pot culture?  
• Is this plant legal in my area?
• How quickly does this palm grow?
• What will its ultimate size be?
• Does this palm require humidity to perform well?
• Does this palm require a lot of water?
• Should this palm be watered from the top or the bottom?

Some palms have very large root systems and would not perform very well or very long in a pot.  Sabal palmetto (Cabbage palm) is one example that has an extensive root system.  Other palms, Washingtonia robusta (California fan palm), for example, grow very tall very fast and would outgrow a pot quickly.  Washingtonia species also prefer to get their water from deep in the ground and therefore prefer to be watered from the bottom.  Other palms resent temperatures much below 50° for any length of time - Cocos nucifera (Coconut palm), for example.  I'd also recommend checking eBay's help section on Plants and Seeds before doing any bidding to make sure you can legally bring the palm into your state or county.

On the other hand, maybe you're planning on trying your new palm in the ground.  I know of people as far north as Idaho, Pennsylvania, Illinois, and Connecticut who are trying palms outdoors!  Contrary to what some may believe, there are palms that can take very cold temperatures - some even below 0°F.  But before trying your palm outdoors, you'll want to ask a few questions if the seller doesn't address them in his/her ad:

• Is this palm legal in my area?  (See eBay's help section on Plants and Seeds above)
• What temperatures can this palm take?
• Can this palm take prolonged cold?
• Does this species transplant well?
  
• How large does this species grow?
• Will this species resprout if frozen back?
• Does this palm become hardier or less hardy with size and age?

Surprisingly, some palms can take very cold temperatures.  Trachycarpus fortunei (Chinese windmill palm) and Sabal palmetto (Cabbage palm), can easily withstand temperatures as low as 10°F without damage.  Sabal minor (Dwarf palmetto) and Rhapidophyllum hystrix (Needle palm) can withstand temperatures as cold as -5°F.

While some palms can take cold weather, they can't always take it for a prolonged length of time.  Sabal palmetto (Cabbage palm), native from coastal Alabama to coastal North Carolina, has been known to endure temperatures as low as -5°F and survive.  However, it cannot endure temperatures that cold on either a prolonged or regular basis.


Some palms are notoriously difficult to transplant and often die.  Bismarckia nobilis (Bismarck palm) is one example.  You may want to ask the seller to ship your palm in a container in order to avoid root disturbance.

Palms also vary in height, with some only a few feet tall at maturity and others well over 100 feet.  Ceroxylon quindiuense (Andean wax palm) grows very tall; Trachycarpus nanus matures at only a few feet.

Unlike other trees such as maples or oaks, palms have only one bud, which is where all the new leaves are produced.  If this bud is killed by cold, the palm will be unable to make new leaves, decline, and die.  Should cold mortally damage the bud of a Butia capitata (Pindo or Jelly palm), it will die, for example.  However, a few species do sucker and can resprout despite suffering serious cold damage.  Serenoa repens (Saw palmetto), native to Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina, is one such example.  Chamaerops humilis (Mediterranean fan palm) also produces suckers, as does Phoenix dactylifera (Date palm).


Many palms do become hardier with size and age.  Trachycarpus fortunei (Chinese windmill palm) is one example.  Some palms, however, keep their cold-sensitive growing buds at or below ground level until the species has grown sufficiently tall for the bud to be above ground.  The ground actually protects the bud from cold, causing a younger specimen to withstand more cold than an adult.  As the bud rises above the protective earth, however, the tree can become less hardy.  This is the case with Sabal palmetto (Cabbage palm).  Many people can successfully grow them to about 8-10 feet, only losing them in a cold winter once the bud is above ground.