Friends, besides the good-old dependable Windmill Fan Palm or Chinese Fan Palm (Trachycarpus fortunei), there IS another palm just as hardy for the PNW. It is a close cousin called Trachycarpus wagnerianus, or “Waggie” for short (by the way, trachycarpus means “hairy body” or hairy trunk in our case).
Waggies have smaller, tighter, stiffer palms than fortunei. The crown as a whole isn’t as wide, and some people think the overall look is more elegant and handsome. You should decide for yourself. While somewhat slower in growth, it will have no problem reaching a height of 30′ or 40′ or more, just like its cousin. And, most important, they are just as hardy.
It is the exciting to know there are more choices! And here at Raintree Tropical we’re excited to be raising waggies from our own seed. Our first generation, germinated in 2013, is now at 5 and 7 gallon size, 2 – 3′ in size. We also have some planted in the ground in our fields (and they are alittle bigger).