Windmill Palm Trees by pool

[dubele]

Hello,
My wife just ordered 3 Windmill Palm Trees that she wants by our gunite shell pool. I'm concerned with damage to the shell at some point. They are 3' tall now, but I have read they can get to 30' tall and I wonder about root damage to the pool shell. Any input here?
Thanks,
Doug

 

[YippeeSkippy]

Um... are these palms known to live in such cold climates? That is my first thought. And yeah, you need to consider roots near the pool as they *will* seek out water.

Maddie

 

[JoyfulNoise]

I'm with Maddie on this one - unless your climate zone can support a palm tree, they will be a nuisance. Too hot & dry? Then you'll be constantly watering them and fighting off dead/browning fronds. Too cold? Then you'll be working to try to keep them alive through the winter. I have three queen palms near my pool and, honestly speaking, they more work than I really wanted. And I have the worst of both worlds for them - hot & dry in the summer so they need heavy daily watering to stay alive and then freezing cold overnight temps in the winter where fronds are easily damaged.

I suggest you return them and look for plants more suitable to your agricultural heartiness zone and ones that are "low maintenance".

 

[Uncle Salty]

Windmills are slow growing palms and if yours is only at 3' I don't think you'll have much to worry about as far as root damage. As others have said climate will be your challenge in your location, these are a cold hardy palm but still I'd be concerned trying to grow in that climate. I'd suggest at 3' you plant them in a large planter so they can be moved out of the elements if needed and also removes your root concerns and can look quite attractive in a nice planter.

Salty

 

[bmoreswim]

They are cold hardy but not that cold hardy. High likelihood they only survive the fall them succumb. They could survive a warmer winter but even warm winters like some lately usually have some very cold spells.

My approach to gardening is generally to go with the environment not against it. That said I've bought a few cheap needle palms and they are surviving but not thriving. They are more cold hardy than windmills but much smaller and in borderline conditions like ours they will likely stay quite small unless you have the perfect microclimate.

The website http://www.chillypalmtree.com/index.html is a great source for information.

 

[texasgal78]

We are in Texas and have 3. They can survive even with snow we get here in Dallas. At the place we bought ours, they had told me that the roots grow straight down and they shouldn't don't pose any problems in the future regarding the shell. Also, I was told they grow about 3-5" inches per year so it will take a long time for them to get really big.

 

[EastCoast]

I have a Windmill Palm for over 2 years living on Long Island. Best approach in the Northeast is to cover them during the winter to keep them dry, I wrap with Christmas light and use a Thermo Cube to trigger the light on and off.

 

[Malibu07]

I had 3 Windmill Palms but lost 2 of them a few winters ago. They are supposed to be "Winter Hardy" but if temps are freezing for too long and they are not that tall, then the cold could kill it. I was told that the roots should not be a problem for my pool.