What lived and died over winter? Tropical and Sub-tropical plants grown near Seattle, Washington

[@tarawilson570]

I was so happy to see the mule palms beat their infection! 🌴🌴🌴

[@vibonitatropics]

They are pulling through. Each has about an 8 inch spear coming out now.

[@sandorspalms]

Great update Brian and all in all everything did well considering. Love the different varieties of banana plants and of course a great selection of palms and plants. On a side note I wanted to mention that I also had little success keeping any of my coconut palms alive for any considerable time during the years. Humidifiers help a bit and also misting but aa I learned they love heat and humidity is not enough. The longest surviver I had was 5 years and it got to a very large size. The trick with keeping this particular one alive during the indoor season was giving it alot of heat and humidity again. I kept the room temperature at a consistent 80-82f and the humidity at about 65-70%. The only problem with all this was my hydro bill lol but I was determined to keep alive as long as possible. I eventually gave it away.

[@vibonitatropics]

Thanks, Sandor! Good info on the coconut palm. While I said I wouldn't try one again, I probably would if it was early in the season and I stumbled across one.

[@sandorspalms]

@@vibonitatropics Yes good call and I forgot to mention that an indoor grow tent would work more efficiently, locking in the humidity and heat if you wanted to go that route.

[@vibonitatropics]

Stupid autocorrect changed your name to Sandra... I'm sure you get that from time to time. 🤣

[@MiscellaneousMichelle]

💚

[@vibonitatropics]

💚

[@jasonsteinberg5404]

Thanks for sharing! My girlfriend has a tiny royal poinciana in a pot inside. Interested to see how these do here.

[@vibonitatropics]

They grow fast but mine looks really healthy. I ended up just leaving it inside this summer. It's doubled in size (they are known to grow fast).

[@nateross14]

I'm pretty sure your coconut palms died due to the drastic sudden reduction of direct sunlight combined with too much moisture in the pot which caused rapid root rot. A humidifier is not necessary and coconuts can handle dry air. As a general rule when they're in low light conditions, even next to a window inside, they need much less water in the pot otherwise root rot sets in.

[@vibonitatropics]

Could be. Not that online info is always correct but there were lots of "experts" talking about lack of humidity being the issue for keeping them alive inside. The soil was completely dry a few inches down before watering. I watered only once a week and I always mix my potting soils with 40-60% perlite to deal with our rainy season.

[@happydonutfarts6235]

Hey Brian, you left your elephant ears in the ground over winter? If that be case, did you protect them with anything else other than mulch? I'm in the same zone in Seatac.

[@vibonitatropics]

I did. The main group I have in the back sits under a giant cedar tree, so they get very little water in the winter. The ones in the front that got full winter exposure didn't come back as strong, but they did come back.

[@happydonutfarts6235]

@@vibonitatropics well I've been wondering what to plant under one of my cedars. Guess I now have winner. thanks man.

[@kmcquack8989]

I had a brugmansia survive last winter. the original was variegated and what came back was typical wondering if you used neem in your spray for indoor plants?

[@vibonitatropics]

I don't typically spray my indoor plants. I've used fungicide on a few of them that have gotten infections. I do get spider mites quite often. What I usually do for those is wait for a week with temps that stay above freezing then stick the plants out in cold rain for a week.

[@kmcquack8989]

What direction does your backyard face? Thanks

[@vibonitatropics]

The thumbnail is taken looking Northwest so my big bananas face southeast.

[@jessicaslinkard6552]

I just moved to Tacoma Washington. Could you send me a list of in ground tropicals that can survive winter here

[@vibonitatropics]

In the ground I have Musa basjoo, trachycarpus fortunei and wagnerianus, needle palms, sabal minor, canna lilies, and colocasia that take no effort at all. I have pindo palms, and European fan palms in the ground as well that require a little bit of help sometimes. I have ensetes and blue javas that I dig out for the winter and store dormant in my garage. Everything else tropical is in pots and comes inside for the winter.