Man, you all go through too much trouble to keep palms outside in Chicago.

As with residences, keeping the hot air from stagnating up high is recommended.

Look into some kind of heater with a fan that keeps the air moving.

A radiant heater doesn't seem like a good idea to me.

Chicago's a great city and I wouldn't give it up for anything. We've got the sports, the shopping, the culture, the entertainment, everything. just not the palms. So that's why we gotta do all we can do to bring those here. Sure I could pack things up and head down to Miami if I wanted to, but I don't want to go there. Chicago is for me and I'm going to do the very best I can growing palms here. Simple as that.

Virginan... do you realize how little effort I put into my palms? Maybe 20 minutes three times each winter.

Ok everyone let's get along. Who cares how much time one puts into it. If that person doesn't mind doing it so be it.

[b]ptmcclanahan:[/b]

I also would not recommend direct radiant heat. That will just dry out the fronds and probably the trunk as well. It wouldn't much matter how much humidty is in the environment since the direct rays would likely dry things out.

Also, consider that with that type of direct heat, it's going to be difficult if not impossible to keep the ground "warm".

I highly recommend using a ceramic heater (if using electric) or some sort of gas (natural?) type heater.

Your best bets are to insulate your greenhouse so that it maintains the heat longer and can warm up to a higher temp without too much use of energy.

[b]chitown033[/b]

Wow, not much time used at all. I can't say that though. I tend to fuss a lot with the palms inside the greenhouse in the winter. Less with the ones outside and protected.

And I agree, no one has any right to judge OUR USE OF OUR TIME! But we've seen that before, haven't we!? );)p

In my case, chitown033, it's certainly a choice as this is my main hobby. Spending lots of time fussing with the palms and other plants, during the winter, sure does relieve the winter blahs. :)

Blondboy,
Don't get me wrong, it is definately a nice hobby to help me through winter as well.
Although, over the years, I have evolved a fast and simple way to protect my trachies; rope lights and layers of frost cloth. It makes it simple to take it on and off when the weather warms or cools; allowing me to enjoy my palms for weeks in winter before the next big spell comes, where I can easily wrap them up again.
I say I don't spend time on my palms because to get them through the winter, time isnt really required. However, I do spend a lot of time protecting things like bananas, washys, and other things that I like to experiment with.

My point is that if anyone wants to have palms here, it is not that hard to pull off and we don't need to "Spend way too much time doing it". Going above and beyond just wrapping them, such as monitoring the temperatures they experience and even just sitting and enjoying them is where the hobby part of it, for me, comes into play.

Right on blondboy with the infrared heater. I bought one from Lowe's last night (will return of course) to test on my outdoor pygmy date palm. I used it without a greenhouse last night just for experimenting and I was able to warm the plant up from 39F to 76F but the humidity dropped from 80% down to 44%. I received my greenhouse the other day in the mail and have a ceramic heater but wanted to experiment with the effects of radiant energy just for fun.

Ceramic is definitely the way to go.

Have a good weekend everyone.

Hi chicago palm growers! I am in zone 6 Mass. and in the same boat as you folks. The only thing that scares me is when I read the combination of dry leaves and hot c9 christmas bulbs. Then some peaple wrap plastic over that. Isn't there a fire danger?

Why dont you just get an HID light and be done with it. I mean for real. If you do any research on the high intensity discharge lights you will find that it gives you both of what you need. First you get the correct amount of light for your cold dark houses, thats right, you can grow plants inside like you do outside in the summer. Second, you also get heat. The lamps give off a little heat, so use it to your advantage.

I am getting one for my greenhouse to use on those dark days we get in Dec/Jan. The extra heat will be great and the plants under it will thank me later when they are bigger. Why stop growth when you can have it 365 days a year, anywhere.

orchiddude, how much wattage are these lights ? what is the cost?

Nucci,
...Just use rope lights. They create pleny of heat and seem more practical than the out dated c9 lights. There is no fire danger with rope lights.

Kyle

Kyle,
Do you use X-mas lights in the foliage of your palms and if so, how do you keep the foliage from being burned? I used them last year, and I ran into this problem. Also, do you use mulch, or just rely on the lights to heat the ground? Also, I agree with you about rope lights. I used them last year, and they definitely got the job done.

Yeah, I used mini xmas lights around the foliage... they don't burn anything. I wrap the rope lights around the ground in a spiral a few feet wide and then up the trunk. Then I put some burlap over that... this keeps the ground pretty well heated. I have one of my Trachies in a rock bed and mulch is kinda messy for that.

Kyle