Where in zone 8 are you? It's one thing to try a palm in, say, Tuscaloosa, and another to try it a bit north of Mobile!

Donvon, I'm not too shocked that your pygmy date palm didn't make it thru last winter, since they're truly a zone 9 palm. But the fact that you had it for the past few winters must mean that you're well below Montgomery, that is unless you babied it with a lot of supplemental heat in the winter. No need to give up on palms though, as there are several that are winter hardy, even up here in zone 7 Birmingham. But for your driveway circle I'd recommend either a pindo (butia capitata) or a multi-trunked windmill (trachycarpus fortunei). The pindo is a zone 8 palm & you really shouldn't need to offer it any winter protection unless overnight temps are forecasted for 15F or below. On about four or five of our coldest nights last winter I staked a five dollar heat lamp about 2 feet from the trunk on my pindo and aimed it up toward the palm crown (where the new fronds emerge)and it breezed thru the winter totally unscathed. The windmill is a zone 7 palm & you shouldn't have to offer it any protection at all. Mine had no protection last winter and all survived with no damage. The multi-trunked ones already potted up are a little harder to find than the common single trunk, but more & more nurseries are stocking them now. Of course you could always buy two or three single ones of varying height & plant them together, if room allows in your planting bed. A multi-trunked sabal palmetto grouping should also be hardy for you, but I'm not sure your circle bed would accommodate one, as their trunks are much more massive.

Hope this helps. Good luck!

the Pindo
{{gwi:363848}}

the multi-trunked windmill

{{gwi:363849}}

Thank you, we live in Helena, about 20 minutes south of Birmingham. I really like the multi trunk windmill, but don't they grow 12" a year? Are there any palms that would work in our zone that won't get more than 6-8' tall? We don't mind winterizing for protection. My husband keeps saying "fountain, fountain" and I'm thinking that might be the path of least resistance...

Helena? well heck, we're practically neighbors. I first registered on Gardenweb several years ago when I lived in Trussville. For the past two years though I've been in Alabaster but I've never taken the time to change my user name on this board. So anyway, I'm probably just south of you a bit. And I'm amazed that you were able to keep a pygmy date alive for a few years up here. How did you do it?

I'd say three to five inches of new trunk per year is more realistic for a windmill, on average. Yes, they will get tall but it will take a few years. The pindo will also develop a trunk, but it's much, much slower than a windmill. You may want to consider a needle palm (Rhapidophyllum hystrix). They're considered the most cold hardy of any palm, and EXTREMELY slow to develop a trunk so you wouldn't have to worry about it getting too tall for many, many years.....if ever. It's more of a bush form, rather than trunking.
Have you been to Hannah's Nursery over on HWY 280? They have a great selection of cold hardy palms, and last year they had a few large needles (see pic) and I believe they were only about $300, which is a very good price for a needle palm that size. Haven't seen any like it around this year, but they might be able to get you one, if you like it.

needle palm at Hannah's last year
{{gwi:363850}}

Hi John! Yes, we went to Hannah's this past Saturday - that's where we saw some really nice windmill palms for $189, which I thought was pretty reasonable. Hannah's has such a great selection of plants and is very organized.

Today my husband picked up a fountain and I've decided to "let him" :) install it. One less decision I have to make!

We kept the pygmy alive with A LOT of TLC. For winters, I wrapped each trunk with burlap, a comforter, and Christmas lights. We then had about 12" of mulch out to where the tips of the fronds reaches (we cut the fronds back for winter). We then covered the whole thing (about 10' diameter) in heavy duty plastic and put a couple heat lamps under the plastic for the really cold nigths. With the mild winters we've had, this worked, but this winter whipped her. We also lost my beloved banana plants this winter - BUMMER!

My info is that Trachycarpus stands a decent chance of making it in your area - but no promises!

By the way - I am growing a perennial that really has a tropical aspect. It goes by two names, Telekia speciosa or Buphthalmum speciosum. I got the seed from Jl. Hudson but that place no longer carries the seed. Forestfarm does carry the plants, at $8 per plant. They have enormous leaves, like elephant ears but serrated and parallel to the groud. Flowers are like a cross between sunflowers and coneflowers.