Dwarf palms for the Jerusalem area
Family: Arecaceae | Origin: Around the world
Palm lovers in the Jerusalem area are usually disappointed: most of the palms are tropical trees sensitive to cold and dryness and many of them die in Jerusalem in the winter, or just suffer and put on a miserable show. Among the few palms that thrive in the Jerusalem area is Washingtonia, which is a very tall palm that spreads itself with thousands of stubborn sprouts when mature and the common Date Palm and the Canary Date Palm, which in recent years were destroyed by the palm weevil beetle.
We recently brought to Shtiley Har some dwarf palms, which are handsome, robust and cold-resistant and fit in beautifully both in a tropical-looking garden and in a Mediterranean garden. Being small and slow growing, they can also be used in small gardens and even in containers and roof gardens.
Trachycarpus fortunei (Chinese Fan Palm)
An upright palm with a single trunk topped with fan-shaped leaves reminiscent of the Washingtonia fan-leaves. Resistant to cold down to -20 degrees and prefers full or almost full sun in the mountain area. Long-lived and can reach a height of 8-10 meters.
The ‘wagneriana’ variety is smaller and has smaller and darker leaves and is also particularly resistant to strong winds. Trachycarpus palms thrive also in large containers and are drought resistant when mature. Beautiful as a single focal plant or in a group.
Origin: East Asia
Chamaerops humilis (Europian Fan Palm)
A multi-stemmed palm topped with fan-shaped fronds reminiscent of the Washingtonia leaves. The petiole (the stalk that join a leaf to the stem) is covered with thorns. Resistant to cold down to -15 degrees and prefers full sun to partial shade. Long-lived and can reach a height of 4-5 meters and a diameter of 6-8 meters depending on its design and trunk pruning.
Europian Fan Palm is highly resistant to drought, heat, cold and wind and thrives even in a large container for many years. Beautiful as a focal plant in the garden.
The silver-leaved variety ‘Argentea’ is particularly beautiful and grows in the wild in the Atlas Mountains. This variety is slow growing and cold resistant even more than the species and is rare in Israel. Resistant even to particularly strong winds it will also thrive in a large container and is drought resistant when mature. Beautiful as a single focal plant or in a group.
Origin: Around the Western Mediterranean
Phoenix roebelenii (Dwarf Date Palm)
A dwarf date palm with long and delicate feathery leaves, whose petioles (the stalk that joins a leaf to the stem) are covered with thorns. Resistant to cold down to -5 degrees and grows well from almost full shade to full sun. Long-lived and can reach a height of 3-4 meters.
In the mountain area the Dwarf Date Palm prefers a corner protected from the wind and young plants may suffer a bit in severe cold spells. It will also thrive in a large container and when mature is relatively resistant to drought. Beautiful as a single focal plant, or in a dense group
Origin: Southeast Asia.
So even if you didn’t think it was possible to plant a palm in your garden – come see these beautiful palms and maybe you’ll change your mind.