Piccabeen Palm Tree

While Thanksgiving is a wonderful day to begin with, it gets better when you score some cool Palm Tree seeds. I was over my in laws house for Thanksgiving this year and they have a really cool Palm Tree in their front yard that was seeding. The Palm Tree is a Piccabeen Palm Tree ( Archontophoenix cunninghamiana ). This Palm Tree also goes by the names Bungalow Palm Tree and King Palm Tree.

This Piccabeen Palm in particular was about 20 feet tall and very healthy. They get the name King Palm because they can reach soaring heights of anywhere from 50 to 80 feet tall. They are native to South East Australia where they are considered a weed. These are fast growing Palms, growing at a rate of about 1-3 feet per year and germinate really fast too. These Palms are happiest in USDA zones 9-11. With the Bungalow Palm you have to water it regularly or it will look horrible. If watered regularly it will look amazing. The Piccabeen Palm Tree has bright green pinnate leaves about 8-10 feet long.

Here are some pictures of the mother tree that I harvested my seeds from.

Here are pictures of my seeds. I harvested 28 seeds but only planted 22.

Thank you for visiting, see you again next time!

Medicinal Monday # 5 - German Chamomile

German Chamomile ( Matricaria recutita ) or Scented Mayweed is a must have for all medicine cabinets. This medicinal plant seems to grow just about everywhere and is said to be invasive. Chamomile grows to a height of about12 inches and grows well in full sun to part shade.

The flowers of German Chamomile are very aromatic and attract bees. To some people this plant may cause serious allergic reactions so use caution if you have allergies. German Chamomile has been used medicinally to treat digestive problems for a very long time. The effects of Chamomile as aromatherapy are soothing and calming, used in stress relief and aiding in sleep. The entire plant is used to treat common aches and pains like a toothache, or shoulder pain. You can also make a yummy tummy tea to help calm that upset stomach.


I do not have this wonderful plant in my collection yet, but here are some pictures I found on Google images.

To read all of my Medicinal Monday posts just CLICK HERE.

I hope you found this Medicinal Monday useful. See you again next time!!

Red Flowered Royal Poinciana Sprouts

Back on August 1st 2008, I placed 11 Red Flowered Royal Poinciana ( Delonix regia ) seeds in a pot. 1o out of the 11 have sprouted! I am very excited about these sprouts because this is one of my favorite tree of all.

The Royal Poinciana Tree can grow to heights of 20-30 feet tall and should be spaced anywhere from 12-15 feet apart. The Royal Poinciana Tree enjoys full sun exposure and is drought tolerant making it ideal for xeriscaping.

The following are my pictures from seed pod to sprouts.

The following are pictures of Royal Poinciana seeds and seed pods.
These were taken 7-1-2008.

This is the seed pod open.

This is the seed pod closed.

The following is a picture of my Royal Poinciana sprouts before I re-potted them. This was taken 10-15-2008.

The following are pictures of my Royal Poinciana sprouts after I re-potted them. These were taken 11-2-2008.

I hope you enjoyed the pictures! See you again next time.