Exoten und Garten Forum               Hardy Palm and Subtropical Board


9,792,171 Messages displayed since 03/03/2007

Re: So many broadleaved evergreens for zone 7/8 never used.

Message from George in Bandon Oregon

well, IMHO seems that a large number of "general interest" nurseries (and more and more for many people in many places that means "big box" store) just stock the most basic stuff which most everybody already knows anyway and the cycle of cookie cutter/tried and true(=boring)continues. OTOH, the cooler winter climate you live in the more difficult it becomes to grow many "BLE'S" WITHOUT careful siting/protection for at least the first few years and/or the worst winters. add periodic very cold winters (sometimes 2 in a row) in some places and even many of the potentially adventurous gardeners may be well and truly scared off from anything (especially of a BLE nature) that may not be absolutely hardy in all conditions and seasons in their area and end up going back to the "tried and true" and boring.

yes, lithocarpus (ditto for the related castanopsis) is a large genus---sadly many of the species are from subtropical areas of southeast asia and are likely tender in the hardest winters/coldest areas. many of the potentially "hardy" species are for sure VERY difficult to find in cultivation or in the trade.

FWIW, both www.cistus.com and www.woodlanders.net have offered different lithocarpus species for mail-order. periodically. my l. henryi (which has provide me with seeds and seedlings I mentioned) and l. edulis came from woodlanders and my l. variolosus and l. dealbata came from cistus and the native (notho)lithocarpus came from local sources (www.forestfarm.com sometimes sells this species).

just like the lithocarpus, the many rare and interesting Asiatic holly species are often extremely hard to get, aaarrrggghhh!!!!


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