Bigger IS Better

We haven't harvested any Mediterranean Fan Palms, Chamerops humilis, for a month or six weeks.  What a happy surprise we had, when we saw how they have grown during their period of neglect!   Each has a heavy main trunk with 3 feet or more of clear trunk.  Most have one or two other trunks with substantial size.  Overall height is somewhere between 5 and 6 feet.   Still just $75 each - well, at least until January.

We have 24 on the yard.  They'd make a great Christmas gift, don't you think?  Give us a call if you need some!

Time for Trimming

We've gotten some great rain the past few weeks - downside is that it limits what we can do in the fields.    One thing we can do is trim up some of the palms.

Here is a row of Date Palms that have never been trimmed.   They have long, sharp spines so trimming can be a bit treacherous.

   

The palm to the left has been trimmed to about 3 feet off the ground.   We left a large amount of petiole to protect the trunk through the winter.   At harvest, a little more will be removed and  the canopy will be tied up to protect the growing point. 


This is a Silver Date or Toddy Date, Phoenix sylvestris that has been in the field for three years.  I'll say it again - it's my favorite palm tree!  I mean, look at the number of leaves in that canopy!

100 Trees for 100 Years

In honor of the centennial celebrations in the cities of San Benito and Harlingen, Simmons Oak Farms will donate 100 live oak trees to deserving local public and private organizations.

Cecil Simmons, M.D. and Leonard Simmons, III, the owners of Simmons Oak Farms, decided that 100 trees for 100 years would be a fitting tribute to these two towns.   The centennial celebrations are particularly meaningful to the owners. Their family first moved to this area in 1919. Cecil raised his family in San Benito where he practices medicine, and Leonard, a 4th generation local farmer, raised his family in Harlingen.

When we first began talking about 100 Trees for 100 Years, Cecil noted, “Wouldn’t it be wonderful if these 100 trees are still around when San Benito and Harlingen celebrate their bi-centennial anniversaries.”

Schools, churches, public entities, and not-for-profit organizations in the Harlingen/San Benito area are eligible to apply. The donated trees will range from 12 to 18 feet tall.   They will be available for installation in February, the month designated as All Valley Arbor Month by the Valley Proud Environmental Council. Donation recipients are expected to install, stake and maintain the tree(s) they receive. Interested parties can download an application at the company website.  For more information or to have an application mailed to you, contact us either by email  or phone (956) 425-5859.

Harvest Time

I loved arriving to work after a few days on the road to see the Texas Mountain Laurel harvest well under way!    This is about a third of December's orders.  

The field is a little bit wetter than we would like - but everyone is being extra careful not to break a rootball. So far, so good!     These will get cured for 3-4 weeks before they are ready to be loaded on trucks and head out - mainly to the Dallas/Fort Worth area.

Rain is in the forecast for this evening and tomorrow - I can't believe I'm saying this, but I sure hope it misses us!

November is for Planting

November is a terrific month to plant shade trees - so this week we're putting in a couple thousand.     It's been two years since these acorns were first planted.   These well-rooted Live Oak, Quercus virginiana, are goind from #5 pots into 24" in-ground Rootmaker bags.    We expect our trees to grow about 1" of caliper each year and will probably begin harvesting this field in 2013.    

This little oak has both good genetics and training.   It has a strong main trunk.  Lots of green all up and down the main stem will add thickness to the trunk. 

A New Favorite Palm Combination

A visit to the Alamo has given me a new favorite palm combination -  a Windmill Palm, Trachycarpus fortuneii, flanked on both sides by Mediterranean Fan Palms, Chamerops humilis.   This side of the Alamo is landscaped with beautiful tropicals -  and the Windmill/Med Fan combination is repeated periodically across the planting bed.  

I had not been to the Alamo in many years and was so very impressed with the grounds.  Absolutely gorgeous!

Desert Willow 'Bubba'

One of the trees that is highly sought after right now is Desert Willow, Chilopsis linearis.   Native to west Texas and the Edwards Plateau this small deciduous tree looks like a willow, but is not.    Dr. David Creech of the Stephen F Austin Mast Arboretum, lists 20 different Desert Willow cultivars.  Discovered by Paul Cox of the San Antonio Botanical Gardens, 'Bubba' is the one that is making a name in the nursery trade.   Propagated from cuttings, 'Bubba' has darker green leaves and large purple bloom.   It also tends to have a more upright growth habit.   One website also makes the claim that 'Bubba' is deer resistant!  How great is that!   Desert Willows propogated from seed may not be true to the characteristics of the mother plant - lots of cross pollination going on . . .   And now a few more descriptions:   Small tree (20 feet tall x 20 feet wide), likes full sun, very high heat tolerance,  low water needs, summer and fall bloomer, deciduous, adaptable to most soils,  hardy to zone 7.

You'd think we'd be writing about one of our products - but this one is one we wish we planted five years ago!   We hope to get some in the ground this season;  we'll keep you posted on what we learn as we grow them here at the nursery.

And the lucky winners are . . .

The winners of the drawing at First Community Bank are  Bill Greer, Maria Garza, Manuel Soria III, and Elizabeth Padilla.   They will each receive a 5" caliper Live Oak tree compliments of the bank.  Congratulations!

Bill Greer with the Stuart Place staff

Texas Mountain Laurels

Simmons Oak Farms can't wait to begin harvesting this year's crop of Texas Mountain Laurels, Sophora secundaflora.  They are still putting on fresh growth so we'll wait another couple of weeks.    This years crop looks great -  full trees with lots of bloom stems.   Most should bloom heavily this spring.  Your customers will love that!  Imagine how stunning this tree will look when all these stems are covered with clusters of purple flowers.

These are the bloom stems

If you haven't placed your order  yet, give us a call!

Wordless Wednesday - Dreaming of Spring

First Community Bank's 30th Anniversary

We started the week with deliveries -   Large Southern Live Oaks to three more First Community Bank locations.   The bank is celebrating its 30th anniversary this week.   Watch the Valley Morning Star for the special events at the different locations -  and then stop by and sign up to win one of these trees!   October is a great month to celebrate 30 years of service to the local communities. 

Here's the tree to be given away by the Los Fresnos Location.

Clumping Date Palms

When I said it yesterday, I knew I would have to eat my words -  My statement that "Phoenix reclinata (Senegal Date Palm) is the only clumping date I know of " is so very wrong -  Case in point, Phoenix theophrasti (Cretan date palm) and Phoenix loureiri.

I do have a little to share re:  Phoenix reclinata hybrids.   This is from Betrock's Cold Hardy Palms. 

"Senegal date palm, or rather what appears to be this species, is often seen growing in USDA Hardiness Zone 9B or even 9A.    The pure species is not hardy abaove Zone 10A, but much of what is sold as this species in U.S. nursery trade is of a hybrid origin.  Hybrids with P. canariensis, P. dactylifera and P sylvestris are not uncommon, and are hardier than the pure P reclinata.  They are almost always identified as P reclinata.  Specimens sold as P. reclinata with bluish or grayish-green leaves are assuredly hybrids.  Like the species, the hybrids are cliustering palms that can achieve 25-30' of height."

Our seed was harvested from P. sylvestris so you can count on it to be a cold hardy palm.

Senegal Date Palm, Phoenix reclinata

Have you been looking for a tropical focal point with a low cost?    This Senegal Date Palm,  Phoenix reclinata, may be just what you are looking for.  

You can see that the main trunk has just over a foot of clear trunk - but its overall height is between 7 and 8 feet.  Even freshly trimmed up for harvest, it is an attention grabber.   It is the only clumping Date palm that I know of. 

Originally from India, Senegal Dates are hardy to zone 9.   It has a moderate growth rate; this one was in a one gallon container less than three years ago.    Senegal date is drought tolerant and not picky about its soil.   Ours have been growing in a nice sandy loam, but we will shortly transplant one to an area with a higher clay content.  We'll keep you posted on that.  

Senegal Dates do have long sharp spines on the petiole.   

According to Betrock's Guide to Landscape Palms, "Senegal date palm suckers vigorously and a single plant can consist of more than 20 stems if left unpruned.  It hybridizes readily with other date species, and a fair amount of the material in teh nursery trade is probably of mixed parentage.  It is valued as a specimen plant for accent, but sufficient room is necessary to allow for its natural spread.  Senegal date looks best if trimmed up to reveal the slender, matted trunks."

Our parent plant was a Phoenix sylvestris so our hybrids are Phoenix sylvestris x reclinata.   We've priced them at $65 each. 

Mystery Date

What do you do when you think you  have planted a couple of rows of this medium-sized, solitary trunked, stately palm, Phoenix sylvestris . . . .  

 . . . . and as the palms mature they show the characteristics of this much larger, clumping trunked palm with vicious spines on the leaf margins?     We fear that our Phoenix sylvestris (also known as Silver Date or Toddy Palms) are actually Phoenix reclinata (Cliff Date) -  or a cross between the two. 

Yes, this is a stately and extremely striking palm  - but we just don't have any first hand experience with it.  

So this morning, we'll be harvesting a couple and bringing one to the nursery to grow in our sandy loam.   Another will be planted in good old Harlingen clay.  

In the field, their 'pups' are still small and somewhat easy to work around.

Don't you just love the fronds of a Date Palm?

Landscaping for Businesses - My Little Rant

This is the kind of business that I love to see come into our towns.   This company installed an attractive (and full) landscape and then actually took good care of it.  In small towns, the chain stores often do as little as they can get by with.  One of the big box stores here in Harlingen planted one lone hibiscus in a number of their parking lot beds - and they have a landscape department!  My thought is if they can't bother to landscape their store, I can't bother to buy plants from them for my home.   Call me a plant snob, but I'd rather spend my nickels and dimes with a store or restaurant that has an attractive landscape.   Landscaping is an outward sign of a company that cares about its customers!

Live Oak Planting

This week, Simmons Oak Farms added a Live Oak, Quercus virginiana, to the Cameron County Master Gardener Arboretum.   The planting bed is surrounded by sidewalk that leads up to the outdoor classroom.   What a pleasant stroll it will be up that sidewalk when it's shaded by oak branches.

We have a new tool that removes the RootMaker bag from the rootball.   Attached to a power drill, it rips the bag right off, disturbing the roots much less than removing it by hand.    This is the first time that we ever used a Treegator.    This tree has a 5" caliper trunk so we zipped two together.  They each will hold 20 gallons of water.   The "gator" then emits the water over the  next 8 hours - slowly soaking the rootball - RIGHT where it's needed.    According to the instructions, a once weekly irrigation is all you need to get your shade tree well established.

We did purchase a box of these Treegators and will have them available for customers who might need one or two.  One of the best things is that it is re-usable (and guaranteed for two years).

Where you can find our products!

Simmons Oak Farms is strictly wholesale to the nursery trade.   Since we get lots of calls from homeowners about our products, we are compiling a list of our retail nursery and landscaper customers.  We sure don't want to leave anyone out - if you want to be listed (including a link to your website), please contact us to make sure your information is up-to-date. 

Remind your customers that fall is tree planting time in Texas!

Anniversary Specials

The month of October, Simmons Oak Farms celebrates its anniversary.  As thanks to our terrific customers, we are offering some specials on our most popular products.  Special prices are good through October 31st

Southern Live Oak (Grown in 24" RootMaker bags)

5" caliper -  $225.00

4" caliper - $160.00

Southern Live Oak (Grown in 18" RootMaker bags)

3" caliper - $75.00

Washingtonia Palms (B&B)
4'-10' clear trunk -  $15.00 CT foot

To place an order 956.425.5859
or catch us on our cells 
Tony (956.873.3631) 
Mary Beth (956.245.9682)

Wholesale to the Trade

Good Morning World

I love to drive onto the loading yard first thing in the morning to be greeted with this bunch of cured Live Oaks.   This is the group that is being containerized.   First, they are cured for 3 weeks and then they go into #95 pots.   The canopies have been left open.  They look so awsome that we end up selling a bunch before we have a chance to pot them up. 

Making Cents: What a difference a value proposition makes!

Making Cents: What a difference a value proposition makes!

Why Oak Trees are not Houseplants

For their 30th Anniversary, the Stuart Place location of  First Community Bank is displaying a Southern Live Oak in their lobby.   Here at the nursery, we took great lengths to pick out a big one for 'em.     Maybe we overdid it a bit . . . .

Ricky, Clara, Linda and Melissa give a bit of perspective to the size.  

Congrats to First Community Bank and all its employees!

30th Anniversary for First Community Bank

First Community Bank is about to celebrate its 30th anniversary.   Their logo is an oak tree and motto is "Other Banks Have Branches, We Have Roots".   For the celebration, the Stuart Place branch is decorating their lobby with a Live Oak. 

Here's the one we'll be taking over to them later today.

Congratulations to First Community Bank and all its employees!

Palms for containers

My home landscape has been grossly neglected this past month. Things planted in the ground can usually take some abuse - but potted items depend on fairly regular care. Last night I realized that two large pots on the patio now only contain compost fodder. I hit the garden center this morning to find something fun to place in those pots. Not a thing really jumped out at me - They've always held blooming plants but it got me to wonder what palms might do well in them.

Here's a very incomplete list of palms we think do well in pots.

Clustering Fishtail Palm, Caryota mitis

Bamboo Palm, Chamaedorea seifrizii (given enough time, a four inch pot will grow 12 feet tall)

Pindo Palm, Butia capitata

Mediterranean Fan Palm, Chamaerops humilis

Pygmy Date Palm, Phoenix roebellinii

Lady Palm, Rhapis excelsa

Windmill Palm, Trachycarpus fortunei (in top photo)

These potted Phoenix roebellinii look good as singles, doubles and triples.

Ordering Your Texas Mountain Laurels

Simmons Oak Farms sells our Texas Mountain Laurels (Sophora secundaflora) by the foot in overall height. At the EXPO last week-end, a few people people wanted to know whether there is much difference in the fullness of the trees at different heights. That led us out into the field this morning to take a few pictures. You will have to judge for yourself what your customers want - me, I'm all about the big material!

The first picture shows Tony with a 7' Mountain Laurel. The pole is flagged at 5', 6', and 7'. You may need to double click the shot, in order to see the flags clearly. Anyhow, there are multiple branches that measure 7' - not just one or two. We sure don't want our customers to feel that we "fudged" on measuring.


This second picture shows a Texas Mountain Laurel that is just below the 5' mark. That makes is not yet ready for the market.

But these trees are still putting on new growth - they'll look even better when we begin to harvest in November.

To see all the pictures we took this morning (including examples of our 6' and 8' Texas Mountain Laurels), click here.

EXPO '09 is a done deal

The Nursery and Landscape EXPO '09 is in the books and our sales team have all headed home to Harlingen and Austin. What a fun week-end! We met lots of new folks in The Green Industry - and had a chance to get caught up with old friends!

This show is going to help us service our mid-sized customers better with delivery trucks stopping at multiple nurseries.

We're already looking forward to San Antonio next August, 20, 21, and 22nd.

Opening Day

The Nursery and Landscape Expo opened today at the Dallas Convention Center - lots of great looking booths! More from out of state than we have noticed before.

We're excited about everyone who stopped by our booth today! Hope we have the opportunity to do business with you.

We brought Texas Mountain Laurels, Mediterranean Fan Palms, Windmill Palms and Chinese Fan Palms for our booth. All are cold hardy to the Dallas area - Med Fans and Windmills are hardy to zone 7.

Audrey and Matt arrived just after noon to assist Juana and I. They handle our central Texas customers. Ironically, in the afternoon we met lots of people from the Austin area. Leonard and Cecil were a little later getting to Dallas. But we will have a full staff to serve you on Saturday and Sunday!

We'll be here on Saturday from 10 - 5 and Sunday from 10 - 3. Stop by if you're in the area! Remember we're in booth 1720.

Green Industry Show

Wednesday morning was a flurry of last-minute preparations for the Nursery and Landscape Expo. Thankfully, everything ran like clockwork. Here, we're loading a Windmill Palm, Thracycarpus fortunii.

Everything was well secured for the drive to Dallas. And it arrived in great condition!

Today Juana and I got the booth put togethers. The front end loader driver assigned to our truck was precise and exact with his placement. That made our job MUCH easier.



There seem to be more great looking booths at this year's show than ever. Just walking through a few aisles made me want to get home and attack parts of my garden.

If you are in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, you need to come by the Dallas Convention Center and see what's new in the Green Industry!

Ready for the EXPO

Everyone's busy getting ready for the Nursery and Landscape Expo this weekend. The truck arrives in the morning to pick up our plant material.

Here we're placing a B&B (balled and burlapped) Chinese Fan Palm, Livistona chinesis, into a container for the show.

When Chinese Fans are harvested their leaves are usually pruned severely - entire branches removed and the remaining leaves are trimmed by 1/3 or 1/2. They do look prettier with all their leaves though - just hope it doesn't put too much stress on the plant.

And this little beauty is a Windmill Palm, Trachycarpus fortunii. My husband and I planted six of them at our home last spring - They have a smaller leaf and a slender trunk so look good in a bed planting. It's a slow grower that only gets to 15 or 20 feet tall. The best thing about Windmills is their cold tolerance - they are hardy to zone 7! That makes them the most cold hardy palm.

Here, a Texas Mountain Laurel, Sophora secundaflora, is being "shrink wrapped". These trees are field-grown in RootMaker bags (a soft in-ground pot). Shrink wrapping will help protect the rootball during transit.

Here are a few of the Texas Mountain Laurels and Mediterranean Fan Palms, Chamerops humilis that we are taking. We've donated two of each to the Parks & Patio project. That means volunteers will use them in a display where EXPO visitors can sit and relax - and then after the show, they'll be donated to parks in the Dallas area.

If you're in the Dallas area this weekend, drop by the Dallas Convention Center and see us. We're in booth 1720.

Phoenix roebellinii

Phoenix roebellini or Pygmy Date Palms are fast growing and easy to care for. That must be why you see so many when driving around Deep South Texas. Landscape designers include them in both commercial and residential projects.

Simmons Oak Farms is growing triples, doubles and a few singles for the wholesale market. Planted, these roebellini will stand between 4 and 5 feet tall. I love to use them at a buildings corners or to frame a window or doorway. They are also good potted patio palms. In fact, if you live north of zone 9, plant them in a location protected from the cold - pots that can be moved indoors during freezing weather is another good option.

This family has used Phoenix roebellini in this mixed bed in front of their home. Its drooping leaves gives it a shrubby look in this planting.


But I really love how these mature roebellini tower over the split leaf philidendrons.

Water Water Everywhere!

With July's triple digit temperatures, there's lots of irrigating going on here at Simmons Oak Farms. This week, all the field grown trees will receive an irrigation.

This field of Southern Live Oaks, Quercus virginiana, was planted last January - the fields that are just one or two years old need more frequent waterings.