Palm Trees for the Yard

Cold Hardiness

• Of the 2,500 palm species, most grow best in regions where frosts never occur, such as in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 10 and warmer. In these truly tropical areas, the array of palms available is large. However, palms may be grown in yards in USDA zones 7 through 9, too. These more cold-hardy palms are minimally fazed by frosts or limited subfreezing temperatures down to 10 to 20 degrees Fahrenheit. Among the most cold resilient include cabbage palm (Sabal palmetto), windmill palm (Trachycarpus fortunei) and pindo palm (Butia capitata).

Scale

• Palms sold at nurseries, especially in containers, may look like a good choice and be relatively inexpensive. Unless you know the palm species, though, buying a small palm may lead to a massive plant in 20 years. Always choose palms that mature to a size that is in scale with both your house and your yard. Avoid massive palms in small residential yards. Also, do not plant palms too close to driveways, overhead utility wires or the house foundation. Issues may rise decades later that call for expensive tree removal.

Small Palms

• Unless you have an expansive estate with lots of garden space, it's best to focus on small palms that mature no more than 25 feet tall. These small, single-trunk palms work well in a multitude of applications, such as at the corner of a building in a foundation bed, along a fence or in a small clustered grove in the lawn. Christmas palm (Adonidia merrillii), crownshaft palm (Areca vestiaria), solitaire palm (Ptychosperma elegans), pygmy date palm (Phoenix roebelenii) and licuala palm (Licuala spp.) are among the more widely grown small palms. Often, multiple plants are grown in the same container to create a handsome clump with fronds growing at different heights.

Large Palms

• Massive palms such as royal palm (Roystonea regia), Canary Island date palm (Phoenix canariensis), Washington palm (Washingtonia robusta), Bismarck palm (Bismarckia nobilis) and coconut (Cocos nucifera) may not be the wisest choices for a yard. Large trunks, the need for room for the fronds to expand, and heavy and dangerous falling fronds and fruit litter become worrisome. Select palm species that mature 20 to 40 feet tall and do not become a burden with maintenance. Foxtail palm (Wodyetia bifurcata), pindo palm, windmill palm, cabbage palm, thatch palm (Thrinax spp.) and queen palm (Syagrus romanzoffianum) may work the best for the size of your property. Contact your local cooperative extension office for recommendations, as the queen palm may be regarded as an undesirable, weedy species in your region.