Pheonix theophrastii

Pheonix theophrastii
Commonly known as the Cretan date palm from Turkey and Crete. It is a spectacular plant with tough, stout and incredibly sharp leaves with spines on the end of every leaflet. Their silver colour is complemented by impressive amber coloured spines at the base of every leaf. The specimen in this photo is growing in the Carribean Home From Home where it has survived 6 winters, experiencing temperatures of -6c for a few nights successively - occasionally dipping to -8c with daytime temperatures of around 0c. It has shown no signs of damage at all. The only worry we have about this plant is whether our summers are hot enough for it to grow and thrive. It is growing in full sun on a well drained bank so has it's preferred conditions but the last few summers since 2005 have been wet and mild so we cannot draw any conclusions yet.