One more Bismarckia shot.

We can grow four or five species of palm on Vancouver Island Stan, but the majority are Trachycarpus fortunei, also known as windmill palms. They are native to Asia and are hardy enough to survive the mild Vancouver Island winters. I do not grow it.

I'm so impressed this palm is growing so well in Union City. I've always wanted to try one when I was living in Fremont, Mission San Jose. I think the climate in Mission San Jose, Fremont is perfect for Bismarckia nobilis.

I had one on the fast track in Hayward. Frond after frond,6 or 7, all of two summers each. Then,Gophers.

Klahanie I saw a tv show (HGTV) of a Vancouver older couple who wanted to move to Mexico(I forget where) because the husband said he cant take the long gloomy days in winter. It would give him SADS.

What I noticed was when they interviewed him at the couples beautiful Vancouver home? He had planted Trachys. It was already in his blood to seek a warmer garden-ha.

I do not blame him Stan. The winters there are dreary. Vancouver has more rain than Victoria on the Island as we are in Olympic Mountains Rain Shadow.
Here on the other hand is constantly nice climate year round. Second best place on this earth for climate...National geographic claim. Always sunny but not too hot. Mexican coast is hot and humid in summer I do not like that. There are thousands of expats living in this area full time and even more snowbirds from Canada in winter.
But I do not think I would like to live here full time. There are plenty of other issues here we do not have up north. Maybe on end of my life when we really do not want more than "our days in the sun"

I love our place on the Island in Summer.

Stan, for some reason gophers love Madagascan palms. I remember my poor Dypsis decaryi. They would grow so well then the gophers would eat then to the trunks! The roots must be sweet to them or something.

I bought a Triangle palm seedling off of ebay the year before Andy. It wasnt looking so hot in a pot,so I stuck it in ground. Two little roots,no fine roots.
So far so good. Not watered much in summer. Gophers and some thieves -the metropolitan bay area- have really made it hard for me to take chances. The triangle lives on.

Klahanie those buying in the tropics tv shows sometimes due the high tropics. Lake Attitlan in Guatamala ( we have a view of 4 volcanoes!) looked idyllic. Except,they have to take a boat into town. Bogota,if you are not worried about you know what,is another...Peru.
I wonder how long that kind of problem of no fast life intangibles- big markets,hired electricians,etc,starts to wear off when you dont vacation..but live there? Where is the local medical center?..that kind of thing.
I need Sonic burger!

One thing which is really wonderful here (in this area) is a medical care Stan. All doctors are mainly US trained and speak English very well. Guadalajara has few 5 star hospitals . Our hospital near to us on the Island looks like a dump in comparison. To find a reasonable medical insurance for eldery is another issue.

Dypsis decaryi palm is somewhat hardy in the Bay Area. I had a few in Mission San Jose, Fremont. Of course, I was always battling the gophers. I'm so lucky I don't have gopher here in my yard. The outer rural properties have major problems with gophers, moles and ground squirrels.