I have always loved Palm Trees...For as long as I can remember...I used to draw Palm Trees all the time as a child....I think it was because of those early years in Florida. I loved the way they would sway in the wind....the fronds gently moving in the breeze....Here in my garden I have a few Palms.....Some I planted and some were volunteers, their seeds having been dropped by some birds, years and years ago....This is one of those 'volunteers', below....
This, I have been told, is called a Date Palm....I have another one lower down on the hill...but as far as I know, they do not actually give off Dates....This has taken a good twenty years to be as big as it is now...It was very small, with about three fronds, when I first began being able to go down into this part of my property....but now...it is thriving with a full 'head of hair', so to speak....It's not huge yet---that takes a lot more years...but it is truly lush and quite beautiful, to me....
I honestly never thought I'd be able to stand on the walkway near it and look through the fronds and see the city....There is something so very graceful about the shape of fronds on these Date Palms. And in fact, their are so very many subtle differences in the different Palm Trees....
The Palm Tree in the picture above is from an entirely different Date Palm, further down in the garden, that I planted when it was still pretty small. And you can see that the fronds are somewhat shaggier---longer leaves, too....Even among these so called Date Palms, there are big differences. I have three kinds of Palms in my garden...well, four really, because I mentioned there are these two different types of Date Palms. The other two species are The Queen Palm and The King Palm, and I have one of each....The King Palm is still quite small even after being in the ground here in my garden for a good 19 years....The Queen Palm...well it has done beautifully. These need a lot of water and there were a few years of good rains and so the Queen Palm really took off. It is tall and stately.....
Not that you can see how stately it is in the picture above. But what you can see is how different the fronds are from The Date Palm. The Queen Palm has these very gracious full and rather soft looking fronds---where the leaves are thinner and fall more gently and gracefully....At the moment I don't have a good shot of the 'stateliness'...as soon as I can go down into my garden once again, I will take a good picture of the whole Palm....It is waaaaay down on the left side at the bottom of the garden.
Right now all the pictures I have of The Queen are from my deck and it is rather hidden by that Date Palm, as you can see in this photo below....
The Date Palm I am referring to which I planted, is dead center in the picture and the Queen Palm is just behind it and a bit to the left as you look at the picture, very close to the chain link fence going down the left side there....But it is pretty much obscured in this picture, except for the top fronds.
These two pictures above represent my attempt at giving you the sense of the size of this Queen Palm, but since they were taken from above...it is all rather distorted. Plus, the fronds you can see in these pictures are all from that Date Palm that is so close to it....But I love the look of the trunk part of a palm---especially the Queen Palm.
Here are a few close shots of the fabulous fronds on that first Date Palm---the volunteer one.
And then there is this one below...the movement in this picture knocks me out...
That one frond....bending with the wind....I wish I could take some digital video of this....write some music to go with it.....and then put it on my blog....(I see what the next steps are going to be here...And they start with this: I must get myself a digital camcorder....!)...Here below, a closer look at the center of the frond...these really are like fans, aren't they?
And one more.....These beautiful yellow ball-like flowers, in the picture below, grow and cluster in the interior of the fronds....nestled there for all the birds to come and feed on, and to still be protected in a way, too...
They say that these are edible and I wonder if that means that humans can enjoy them as well as birds....It's too high up for me to give them a try....But, mabe next time it flowers I'll have my gardener try to cut one of those bunches down and we can try them....I'll let you know!
More To Come.....
- had this to say:
Palms are so majestic!That is probably why they are called Queen and King Palms LOL! These photos are lovely and I would love to see some taken from lower down the garden when you are able.
The one photo of the date palm reminds me of a fire work :-)- Thursday, April 5, 2007 at 2:16:00 AM PDT
- had this to say:
Ohh lucky you who have palm trees in your garden. To a Norwegian that's so exotic you know! Last time I saw palm trees was in Kuala Lumpur in December, Malaysia and then it was decorated in Christmas ornaments. Very strange but also very beautiful.
Btw; thanks for your visit and comments on my Summer Memories post; Yes you ought to like fish if you go to Norway - don't you? :-)- Thursday, April 5, 2007 at 2:39:00 AM PDT
- had this to say:
I too love Palms. Where I live in Far North Queensland, we are surrounded by them. They are simply beautiful trees and give off a wonderful 'tropical' feeling. because we live in an apartment we have a couple of 'sugar cane palms' in big pots and look so lush and green. My apartment complex has many though...
Just up the road from me (about a 5 min drive north) is the suburb of Cairns called Palm Cove. You can imagine what it is like. But my local beach too has lots of palms tickling the sandy beach...
When we first moved up here from Melbourne, where it isn't 'tropical' I couldn't beieve all the palm trees on the side of the road. Paradise, truly paradise...- Thursday, April 5, 2007 at 3:38:00 AM PDT
- had this to say:
I never really examined palms too closely. Your pictures are beautiful, the fronds so graceful and elegant. Thanks for giving me pause and allowing me to stop and take the time to smell the roses as it were and appreciate the beauty of the palms.
- Thursday, April 5, 2007 at 4:14:00 AM PDT
- had this to say:
Your palms are gorgeous!
Thank you for sharing them with us.
Fabulous pictures.
Your garden is truly amazing.
Huggles and Love,
Raggedy- Thursday, April 5, 2007 at 5:09:00 AM PDT
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had this to say:
Palm trees put me in an instant vacation state of mind. Can you believe that some grow in a few places in Ireland?
Most digital cameras have video feature. If you take a short video you can upload it to Youtube or Onetruemedia and then post it on your blog. I did my first recently but becasue of my server I had to link to the video. If I can do it anyone can. You know I have no tech-no-logic sense.- Thursday, April 5, 2007 at 6:20:00 AM PDT
- had this to say:
Good Thursday morning Old Lady ! Gardens are wonderful things in their infinite variety. You've taken some more excellent pictures ! It is a great way to begin the day, looking at that greenery and life --
- Thursday, April 5, 2007 at 7:41:00 AM PDT
- had this to say:
ahhhh, palm trees! I remember a number of streets in San Fernando Valley lined with them! They gave a royal feel to the street.
I had some palms in my yard when I lived in Florida too.. but Royal Palms are one of the prettiest I think.- Thursday, April 5, 2007 at 10:12:00 AM PDT
- had this to say:
Love palm tree! Yours are just wonderful, Naomi! I have two beautiful palm tree in my garden. I don't know their name...but I will search on Google. Last year many toucans come to eat the little fruits of my palm tree.
Have a nice and happy Easter!
Many hugs!- Thursday, April 5, 2007 at 10:32:00 AM PDT
- had this to say:
I wish we could grow Palms. I love the way they blow in the wind. Nothing like watching/hearing them while lying in a hammick:-).
Have a great day !!!!- Thursday, April 5, 2007 at 10:48:00 AM PDT
- had this to say:
Gardens are so different in different areas of the country and yet all of them are beautiful. Even Arizona although I don't think I could ever get used to raking my rocks in the yard instead of having real grass.
BTW, I put a link to a post I did a year ago that shows how I did the pictures through the kaleidoscope. It was with my older Nikon Coolpix camera.- Thursday, April 5, 2007 at 2:55:00 PM PDT
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had this to say:
I hope you are very proud of those. They are magnificant. I love Palms too...you just see them and they scream "HOT WEATHER" and I love hot weather! And they have so much to their design...beautiful plants.
- Thursday, April 5, 2007 at 3:01:00 PM PDT
- had this to say:
What an appropriate post for this holiday season! I adore palms. We had some in our yard in Louisiana that were my favorite. They had razor sharp edges, I wonder what kind they were?? Gorgeous pictures, Naomi, as usual.
- Thursday, April 5, 2007 at 3:05:00 PM PDT
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had this to say:
Long before I moved to Florida, 20 years ago, I also was captivated with palm trees. I think they're "stately" and I also love the way the fronds sway in the breeze.
Have you ever had "Swamp Cabbage?" A patient's husband turned me into a real Southern gal when he cooked it up for me. I LOVE it! And it's cooked from the top of the palm tree...the heart of the palm. Yummy!- Thursday, April 5, 2007 at 3:27:00 PM PDT
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had this to say:
I like palm trees too and as a child also loved to draw them. They still remind me of the few years I lived in Hollywood,Florida as a young bride where I gave birth to my first child and palm trees not yet fully grown lined both sides of the street where we lived. I envy you your garden filled with countless lovely blooms and greenery.
- Thursday, April 5, 2007 at 3:52:00 PM PDT
- had this to say:
I love palms too, Naomi, especially if they are leaning out over a beach in the tropics!!!
- Thursday, April 5, 2007 at 4:34:00 PM PDT
- had this to say:
The palm trees are pretty. So different from our trees here! I have been to Florida and seen the palm trees there. Seems like they withstand the hurricanes pretty good. The diversity of plants is qutie amazing!
Great photos as usual Naomi! I hope you are feeling 100% better now!- Thursday, April 5, 2007 at 5:02:00 PM PDT
- had this to say:
The only palms I've seen have been the ones in Mexico. The poor palms would freeze here today :(
- Thursday, April 5, 2007 at 7:00:00 PM PDT
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had this to say:
Oh! How absolutely exotic! You have captured some spectacular photos of the various fronds, I really never knew that there were different varieties of palms.
Here via Michele's, so glad that I stopped by!- Friday, April 6, 2007 at 2:10:00 AM PDT
- had this to say:
You never cease to amaze me Naomi! Movie stars, cityscapes, singers and authors, cacti and now palms. I never know what to expect next. You have a wonderful garden.
Michele sent me,
Mike- Friday, April 6, 2007 at 9:58:00 AM PDT
- had this to say:
Thats alot of palms ;)
Lovely photos though your garden looks awesome ;)
On another post you have to very contrasting signs and it is indicative of our differences ;o
Have a lovely weekend ;)- Friday, April 6, 2007 at 10:00:00 AM PDT
- had this to say:
I've always been rather partial to palm trees too... but most of the ones I've seen up close and personal have had big floppy leaves rather than the feathery fronds... Those remind in a way of giant spider plants! LOL!
- Friday, April 6, 2007 at 10:16:00 AM PDT
- had this to say:
I love Palm trees...i think they are so exotics and they make think of beaches and sun and the summer...hmmm I just love them and your garden is stunning:)
M.- Friday, April 6, 2007 at 10:34:00 AM PDT
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had this to say:
I dont know but I dont remember seeing a palm tree yet but only coconut trees though. Anyway, advance happy easter to you!
- Friday, April 6, 2007 at 11:25:00 AM PDT
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had this to say:
How lovely...I have always thought Palms were gorgeous.
I'm glad you have such a beautiful garden to enjoy.
Kendra- Friday, April 6, 2007 at 11:55:00 AM PDT
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had this to say:
Hope that you have an excellent holiday weekend !
And thank you for leaving the nice comment on my blog yesterday !
Sincerely,
Loving Annie- Friday, April 6, 2007 at 6:03:00 PM PDT
- had this to say:
Pretty! We don't have any palms in my neck of the woods-very cool of you to share! here via Michele as always!
- Friday, April 6, 2007 at 11:41:00 PM PDT
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had this to say:
How wonderful that you love palm trees! I do too! Must be been that Normandy Isle magic!(lol). I was a member of the International Palm Society when I had my house in the Valley. The meetings were full of useful information and fun, and they always had little seedlings of rare specimins to bring home and nurture. Their publications are great, too. You might enjoy checking out the website, and perhaps join.
- Saturday, April 7, 2007 at 12:48:00 AM PDT
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