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wantonfly

Cyrtostachys Renda ( Red Sealing Wax ) growth rate

wantonfly
15 years ago

Hi everyone. I'm new to palms and now am enamored with Cyrtostachys Renda. I plan to buy seedlings vs a 2-3 foot plant. I've been searching the web as well as GW site for more specifics on the palm's growth rate. All I can find is "slow growing." Can anyone with experience comment on Cyrtostachys' natural growth history in ideal conditions, ie time from seedling to 1 ft, 2 ft, 5 ft, 10 ft, etc? I'd hate to buy seedlings if it's going to take ten years to get one foot :)

Also, at what age/height will the red color manifest? Thanks.

Comments (25)

  • garyfla_gw
    15 years ago

    Hi
    Have you checked out the Fairchild site?? They have the most culture info I've ever found .
    Don't you just love thst "Slow growing"?? lol
    One way to get an estimate of not only growth but hardiness is by comparing prices of various sizes The wider the range the more difficulty and time involved at getting it to that size. A mature plant is one of the most expensive by far!!! BTW providing "ideal" conditions is really tough outside of the tropics. Good luck with yours
    I killed the three I tried. gary

  • david_
    15 years ago

    These are painfully slow and if you want what you see in the pics on the internet you will be waiting for yrs.They go from one gallon to 3 gallon in 2 3 4 etc yrs. They will not survive with temps under 40 degrees at all and are slow indoors even more.I don't want to sound gloom but I want you to know if you want want soon it will not happen. Good luck

  • wantonfly
    Original Author
    15 years ago

    Thanks Garyfla and David. Fairchild did not give specific rates. I plan to grow them in containers and winterize. I've had success with growing many tropical fruit trees and plants in containers and now looking for (gulp) a new challenge in Cyrtostachys Renda. The more difficult plants are in the end more treasured, right?

    Has anyone here grown them from seeds/seedlings and care to share your specific growth rate observations?

  • wantonfly
    Original Author
    15 years ago

    Thanks steve0910. Guess I'll deduce about under a foot per year in the beginning and decent conditions. Wow! At least I'm still relatively young! I'll try to find the gentleman up north as you suggest.

    Anyone grown them from seeds?

  • david_
    15 years ago

    That was 3 ft in 5 yrs from what I understood and that's rapid growth in my opinion.

  • garyfla_gw
    15 years ago

    Hi
    If you find a source for these would you share?? Largest I've seen were at Searle Bros . Several hundred dollars for around 4 foot. Would love to see some used as a yard plant here but have been unable to find any. Anyone know of some?? gary

  • wantonfly
    Original Author
    15 years ago

    Garyfla, the one place I'm looking at sells a 3 ft specimen for $125 plus s/h.
    http://www.tropicalfruitandpalmtrees.com/sealingwaxpalm.htm

    I'm still debating whether to get this one or buy seedlings for $15 for 10. Hmmm...5 years for 3 ft...now I'm leaning more towards the 3 ft specimen. lol

  • garyfla_gw
    15 years ago

    Hi
    I checked the website and one part set off in alarm in me lol. "No species or cultivars" lol While this may be splitting hairs , Fairchild lists 11 species and at least
    5 cultivars While Kew ,14, noting "Great variation,which may or may not be cultivars." You are going to pay a lot of money for this plant so be sure you get exactly what you pay for?? C. renda has the greatest red coloring and also the more difficult to grow so suspect substitue species??
    I would shop at a specialized nursery to be more sure that you're getting renda. My two cents lol gary

  • wantonfly
    Original Author
    15 years ago

    They have an ebay store with good feedback. I ordered a grafted mango, guava, and avocado from them this week and expect delivery next week. Everything seems legit to me but I'll have to see before I order the renda.

  • lac1361
    15 years ago

    I bought one from their eBay store 2 months ago and it was bigger than I expected with great red coloration. It has settled in nicely and produced noticable growth. I am going to over winter it in my heated greenhouse with my heliconia and sensitive ginger.

    Steve

  • wantonfly
    Original Author
    15 years ago

    I went ahead and bought 20 seedlings, and they arrived today; very healthy 2-3 inch plants. Will let ya'll know how it turns out in a few years :)

  • usherray
    14 years ago

    Hello,

    TI am on my second red sealing, and the first one that I ordered from tropicalfruitandpalmtrees.com died. When I received it, it was as if they stuffed it in the box!! The fronds that were too long to fit into the box, were literally bent to fit into the packaging. For a palm that grows EXTREMELY SLOW, it is heart stopping painful when you have to snipp off the tallest of the fronds due to careless packaging!!! ORDER AT YOUR OWN RISK!!! There is a seller on ebay that is selling them for $69 bucks with free shipping. I recommend them over tropicalfruitandpalms any day!!

  • patbatzu
    12 years ago

    Be extremely careful do not expose to temps below 50 you will kill it. they pale a the slightest touch of winter chill and they require very high humidity. Mine received MASSIVE cold damage last winter when it got down to 44 it is just now starting to recover.

  • chachacharlie
    12 years ago

    Extremely hard to keep happy indoors. I tried and I failed.

  • garyfla_gw
    12 years ago

    Wantonfly
    It's been a few years so how are they doing??
    gary

  • David_Sweden
    9 years ago

    Hi. I hope it's ok to add to this old thread, my subject fits really well:

    I got a Cyrtostachys renda seedling a week ago, it spent 6 days in a parcel from Germany to southern Sweden, and they sent it when the forecast showed night temps down to 50F but I think it was slightly warmer than that but I can't be sure. It was quite pale when it arrived (photo is when unpacking, next to a Cyphosperma) and I think it is now even paler, like pale yellow with just a little mottled green in there.

    One reason for pale leaves in general is waterlogging but I read this one likes wet feet and normally grows in swamps so I have kept it with about ý" of water on the tray. I'm thinking maybe I should stop that right away before it rots - maybe seedlings don't like it that wet?

    But then I found this thread, I knew it can die if under 50F even shortly but didn't know the symptoms. From what I read here, I'm thinking water is probably ok, but that it got too cold.

    It's received about 4 hours of direct sun (until 1 pm) here, the rest of the time lots of indirect light, temp around 75F.

    So what happens with a cold damaged Cyrtostachys renda I wonder? Will it get better soon, or worse? Should I do something? Or ask the grower to send a new one? I did warn them 2 times about the forecast but it was too difficult for them to delay the shipping process for a few days.

  • Scott Shaeffer
    8 years ago

    I have two small ones that I've kept alive and happy now for about 1 year indoors. Bought as smaller, but full 1 gallon palms. Aside from keeping them in standing water I take it a step further and warm the water they are in. I do this two different ways. One palm I have is in a tall sided hanging basket "tray" that I keep water and the Lipstick palm in. That sits on top of a heated grow mat like you'd use for seed germination. All that sits inside a indoor mini greenhouse that has a mini 4 inch fan inside attached to a timer that turns the fan on 15 minutes every hour to provide a breeze inside. Palm has been growing in there, slow but steady.

    The other one simply sits on a plant shelf open air but next to other one in front of East facing window. I bought a black kitchen sink wash tub at Walmart and also a wire rack for the bottom that fits perfectly inside the tub. I then bought a submersible aquarium heater and have it set to 85f and it sits on the bottom under the rack. Palm sits on the rack.

    Both of these methods provide the standing water they need that is also warm like their native environment and adds the humidity they like as well, but the humidity isn't as important as making sure the soil stays very wet. The thing you have to really keep an eye on is the water level. Since it's warm, it can evaporate faster so you have to keep adding to it often. I use either RO water or collected rain water, never tap water.

    Hope this helps and GOOD LUCK! BTW they are easy to find and buy through Ebay.

    Scott
    Omaha


  • garyfla_gw
    8 years ago

    Hi

    was hoping the original poster would comment ,Since the post is 7 years old would be curious has to how he's fared ?? gary

  • PicoAzores
    8 years ago
    last modified: 8 years ago

    Will it survive Azores? We get slightly below 50F (10C) a few nights a year, usually 48F (9C) but one night was 46F (7C). Regarding warm temps we get a constant 77F (25C) in summer sometimes into low eighties (28-29C), but for about 8 months of the year it is rather cool in the 50s and 60s (10C to 17C).

  • chachacharlie
    8 years ago

    No chance. This palm requires 100% tropical climate. The Azores climate is too cool.

  • Ken Nguyen
    7 years ago

    Garyfla,


    Guess better late than never! I'm the OP and to answer your question, I kept the seedlings under a humidity dome and kept the potting soil moist, but unfortunately they grew maybe 1 mm over 6 months. I had to move into a temporary apartment for work so ended up abandoning the project. Hopefully will revisit this plant when I finish building a house, but will likely opt for a larger plant.


    Ken

  • stanofh 10a Hayward,Ca S.F. bay area
    7 years ago

    I've only seen them in hot humid greenhouses or warm atriums. No lows below 70f. And there's not a single photo on the net of one growing in the subtropics. All the hot tropics.

    Still,indoors might be possible...warm nights,sunny window,lots of water. I have my doubts long term. Give it a try.

  • PicoAzores
    7 years ago

    Thanks for the invaluable info; that saves me and probably others a ton of time and some money :-)

  • stanofh 10a Hayward,Ca S.F. bay area
    7 years ago

    I know of a poster who lives in the Azores. He compares it to when he lived in Berkeley Ca. So the Azores are more of a milder bay area...but not a steamy,hot and wet Borneo.

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