I don't think any can be stored like that. They are all from tropical regions mostly so they grow constantly. They do slow down in the cooler weather, but they need light/sun, and warmth. That would be convenient though if they could be overwintered like that. They become quite troublesome over the long winter months.

Can they be stored,in a pot,in a sunroom during the winter? Or would just setting the pot in the ground and lifting it during the fall be a better idea?

Yeah, the sunroom is probably the best idea for palms in our kind of climate. What type of palms are they anyways?

windmill palm.

hmmm. The chinese Windmill palm is very cold hardy. Some people overwinter them in your temperature zone with protection. You might want to do a search on the palms forum for info on overwintering that type of palm. But if you have a big sunny window it might be just as easy to bring it inside.

I've grown Trachycarpus fortunei (Windmill palm) for well over 20 years out here on the BC coast. They're no problem at all outdoors here and infact need a cool dormant period. They should be fine in a zone 7 with periodic winter protection. In your zone 6, perhaps a visit to the Hardy Palms Board or Cool Tropix site could give you the info you need. There's plenty of info for those in cold climates. I don't recommend digging them up every fall and bringing them inside. This will do more harm than good.

Cheers, Barrie.

I bought a Trachy here in Nova Scotia and i'm going to try it outdoors in a few years, its currently a 3-gal size. Unfortunately, in Nova Scotia protection is a must. I live in z6a( Annapolis Valley). Though in Yarmouth,NS(zone 7a) or Cape Sable( z7a/b) you can get away with less protection.

Try David Francko's book : Palms Won't Grow Here and Other Myths. It's the very latest info on palms in cold areas. You can order it through suppliers like Amazon.com and is very much worth reading.

I looked in a library for that book--but can't find it! lol..and I am not generally a library kinda person.

You can squeek by with alot of half hardy things in a warm winter, but I'd be extra careful to push the zonal envelope more than half a zone without being willing to give extra measures to protect slower growing palms. You need to ask yourself if you are so intent on growing this outdoors that you will do the work to protect it when necessary. I'd think it much easier to grow it as a container plant; sink it into the ground for summer and winter it on a cool sunporch. Trachycarpus will handle relatively small pot sizes as long as they get good regular care. Rhaphis excelsa is another look alike palm but with more slender multiple trunks, that would do even better as an indoor/outdoor specimen, and will tolerate quite abit more shade, but certainly less winter cold.

Well....if you wrap the trunk in bubble wrap, that might halp. Some burlap around the foliage (in which should be tied up) would also help. During a cold spell (I mean a REALLY cold spell) A blanket might do for overnight. I actually never have done this as I don't currently have any cold hardy palms, but maybe in the future. Best Luck. :)

Rick

I live in southern Ontario in USDA zone 5b. Last year I successfully overwintered a young palmetto palm I had grown several years before from seed I gathered in Orlando, Fla.
The small palm is near a south facing wall. I covered it under a very large pile of dry leaves under a plastic tarp. To my great surprise it survived one of our harshest winters in years. I would like to try a Vancouver-grown Trachy to see if I could overwinter it outside, perhaps in a large box made of rigid styrofoam insulation filled with dry leaves. Has anyone tried this?

Rick6a did you leave the tarp on all winter? I keep reading conflicting info, some say don’t cover for more then 3-5 days other things make it sound like you set it and forget it. I’m trying my pinto palm this year and maybe a windmill, waggie and hybrid.