Windmill Palm purchased

Finally made it through heavy traffic on Bandera Road, and looked at palms.  The Texas Sabal palms were very wide and not very high.  They actually looked multitrunked (though, according to online sources Texas Sabal are singled trunked).

What looked much better were the Windmill Palms.  They were said to be similar but narrower and more compact.  That's what I needed, so I got one in a large container (10 pounds?) for $119.  It will be planted along with my Monterrey Oak on Monday.

Windmill palm is native to China (they are found in the wild at the foothills of the Himalayas) but not considered invasive except in certain rainy counties of California.  Slow growing but extremely hardy plant.

They look similar to date palms.  It might be nice to get dates, but only female trees produce dates and they only produce dates if there is a male nearby.

*****

The Canary Island Date Palm is far more awesome than the Windmill.  I believe it also suitable for our climate, it was mentioned as being so by a palm expert who wrote to the San Antonio Express News, though technically it is listed as zone 9a (20-25 degrees minimum) when San Antonio is listed as a Zone 8b city (15-20 degrees minimum).  OK, that's just one zone off...and guess what, I'm locating mine in a fenced area which includes a utility power transformer to help keep it warm.

The Texas Sabal is said to be the best for our area, but it has a large trunk and slow growth.

I plan to call Rainbow Gardens tomorrow and see if I can switch.