I thought that for this particular article I would talk a little bit about landscaping and the use of palm trees, both to enhance the vistas in any garden.
I suppose in a way palms evoke thoughts of the tropics, South Sea Islands with sandy beaches, coconuts, holidays, jungles, etc. How would you like to landscape your garden so you could have a jungle path right in the middle of suburbia? Palms too can soften the stark look a lot of the telegraph poles give to the area we have around the house.
At a glance all palms seem to be the same. Further investigation will show there are a lot of great differences between them. Trunks can be smooth; they can be ridged and prickly. Fronds can be large or small, shaped like fans or heather like (deeply divided like a fern leaf).
There can be many differences in the foliage and the colour of the trunk. Except most palm trees have green foliage. Some species have shades of red, yellow, white and other colours in the trunk.
It is also possible to grow the types of palms that look absolutely terrific in a container. Brahea for example makes for a very good-looking container plant.
We have a Kentia palm outside the back door, in a container. This one has a very slender trunk and actually comes originally from Lord Howe Island. They are highly ornamental and excellent indoors or as a landscape plant. They do prefer coastal conditions and do not tolerate drought. Partial shade is a must when the plants are very young. Howea forseriana (Kentia Palm) grow to 15 metres (11.7 feet), and have fronds that are about 3-4 metres (9.9-12 feet) long. The fronds grow somewhat erect at first and then become slightly drooping. This plant is very popular as an indoor plant throughout the whole world.
There are about 210 genera of the palm family, and palms come from the Himalayas, from Mexico, from the Pacific, the Cocos Islands, from eastern Asia you name it. So, if you wanted to landscape your garden with palms, you've got a lot of choice.
There are common problems with all palms: the tips sometimes turn brown, foliage can die back starting at the tips and spreading, the plant can get yellow foliage, maybe because it is too wet, and the plant can get sticky foliage or black soot caused by scale or other insects.
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