Actually no. The bananas are puny, but the palms are still growing. In general some things are growing great, others not so much. Alocasia callidora is huge, but the colocasias are not so impressive. Musa basjoo is downright puny, mine's only about 8 feet tall, way below normal. Cannas are small and only starting to bloom. Crapes have not started to bloom. But the palms are OK. FYI. we are forecast to have our 3rd record low in a week tonight.

Well, it has not been HOT here, but it has been relatively normal...so far, and palm growth has been good. Usually, I see fastest growth, on all plants, in August. There is a certain lag time between when the plants go out and when they 'take off'! But, I think The weather will actually be getting hotter as the Bermuda High starts to assert itself...it has been a silent player...up to now.

Windmills have really enjoyed the rain and the relatively mild temps here in SE NC. The pulled spears and damaged fronds from the icy winter are all a distant memory. My pindos are still looking a little sad, but have pushed a fresh leaf or two. I hope they will pick up some speed in Aug.

I will agree, my sabal minor hasn't really recovered from last winter...essentially no undamaged unfurled fronds, though they're TRYING slowly. The summer here didn't even require air conditioning till July and really has only required AC about half of July, and it's cooling up for the foreseeable future with highs in the low 80s and nights in the 50s.

So...not a good hot growth year for palms here in NW Arkansas.

Also agree with the sabal minor growth. Mine has a lot of blooms this season, but it is growing slower than usual. It got pretty badly damaged this winter here even with protection, but the protection kept it from being totally defoliated so it doesn't look too bad right now.
My Med fan palm is growing pretty well despite the cooler summer and my trachys are growing just as fast as they always have so no issues from them.
My Ensete Bananas are growing to insane proportions with the cooler weather and it seems like my elephant ears are thriving with the cool weather as well! It's been a pretty good year for the tropicals and subtropicals that don't like extreme heat, but for the ones that do (like my plumerias for example), the lack of a few good heat waves have definitely been noticeable (some of the plumerias are growing and blooming normally, but others are growing slower than usual).
I'm hoping for some prolonged warm and sunny spells this month. Looks like there's a chance for some heat like NJ said and I also really agree that the best growth on plants happens in August. My yard usually explodes in the month of August even though July is usually has slightly better growing weather. I'm hoping for a warm up. Although temperatures have been close to normal compared to average, I'm definitely feeling less mugginess in the air which I think has made some days feel cooler than they usually do.
-Alex

Here's a prediction from the weather channel for the extended.

No big changes here, same ol', same ol' pattern. It's more drought and heat out West, cool in the Midwest and Great Plains, but East may be warmer. As I said, Bermuda High has not been a factor this year so far (but not unusual for it to strengthen in late Summer into Fall, as Summer tends to linger past the calendar dates).

Here is a link that might be useful: August-Fall forecast

Mine are growing but at a much slower rate than usual. We've hit 90 twice all summer. Most days are in the 70s (sometimes low 70s) I can usually count on three new fronds on my bottle palms each summer. this year they've put out 1 and each have a new spear. Very comfortable but not Palm friendly

We've been very consistent. It's been a 'normal' Summer FOR A CHANGE, but most residents are experiencing it as cooler than normal due to abnormally hot recent summers. So, highs have been in the mid80's and lows in the upper 60's, humid, decent rainfall, and a distinct lack of 'heat waves' (over 90 for 3 or more days). But, I would not say it has been 'cool'. It's all relative, I guess! Local farmers are real happy! Seems like we have take a break, and now the rest of the country is experiencing weird weather...the West, big time!