Phoenix canariensis on latitude 62,5°N

Phoenix canariensis, Canary Island Date Palm, in Ålesund? An interesting question! This palm is widely used around the Mediterranean as an ornamental plant for parks, boardwalks and in gardens. But can Phoenix canariensis grow in Ålesund, Norway? The general climate statistics accompanied with a favourable microclimate indicates that. Ålesund is known for having the mildest winters in Scandinavia and a USDA classification ranking up to 9A, but what about the summers and the season of growth? The summers are not the sunniest and warm ones, but with good application of heat creating effects (microclimate) in a south faced and sheltered garden, good results should come. But this remains to be seen.

Phoenix canariensis on the Greek island Chios, summer 2002 (Photo: Thomas Vestre)

Autumn - winter (2004 - 2005): Three Phoenix canariensis, approximately one metre high each, was bought. One of the palms was placed outside at once (standing in the pot) to test its limits against the winter conditions. After some time I was able to draw some conclusions, which were that the temperatures were not a problem but the wind affected the thin branches quite badly. I decided at that very early point that solid winter protection against the winter winds and heavy rainfalls would be highly necessary for the palms in the ground.

The two other palms were placed in an unheated room in the basement, where the temperatures were about 5 °C, to be hardened and prepared for a life permanently outdoors. Little water should be given in such cold conditions. In my case, 3-4 decilitre water every second week was enough for each palm.

2nd April 2005: The largest and strongest of the two palms was planted in Norwegian soil, the other palm was moved only to a bigger pot. A sheltered, sunny and warm site was to become the palm’s location. This site is located by the house’s south facing wall, where higher temperatures are experienced than the surrounding areas. The date of outplanting was set to 2nd April because of a longer period with high temperatures. Several days ahead, the temperature had reached above 10 °C. These temperatures had managed to heat the ground enough for the outplanting of the Phoenix canariensis. A lot of old soil was removed and replenished with new fresh soil, which contained about 40% sand. The sand improves the drainage. The photos below were taken the day of the outplanting.

 

 

21st may 2005: Many leaves and branches have become brown and dry. The palm looks unhealthy. The reason for this corruption is unknown. The palm was moved to another part of the garden, and the old place of growth was granted to a Trachycarpus fortunei. The new lot has more hours of sun during summer, but has unfortunately more wind.

The brown trunk	Brown leaves and branches		Brown leaves
The new site

        

 

1st january 2006: The Christmas week was colder than usual, which led to problems for the canariensis. Several frost nights, with temperatures down to -6 degrees celcius damaged the plant. The major problem was the length of the cold period. The pictures below tells the tale better than words. But still, there is life. The question is now, how damaged is the plant. Will it ever manage to heal, or are the damages too massive?

The whole protection	Under the plastic		The plant uncovered
The trunk	Branches, damaged by frost	Still green in the middle

 

 

19th february 2006: The palm is dead. It was probably damaged so badly by the low temperatures in december and january that it never got the chance to recover properly. The palm was quite small, a bigger one would have managed the conditions fairly better.

Grey and faded	Damages

 

Status: Closed