17 Cold-Hardy Palm Trees: Palm Types That Tolerate the Cold

Cold-hardy palm trees are species within the Arecaceae plant family that can withstand short stints of cold weather. Although any species of palm tree will be unable to withstand more than a few weeks of freezing ground temperatures, there are cold-tolerant species that can survive limited exposure to snow and frost. The hardiest palm species are native to mountainous regions of Asia or temperate climates of North America that experience low temperatures at high elevations.

These winter-hardy palms can provide a tropical aesthetic to outdoor gardens or landscaping:

1. 1. Bismarck palm: This evergreen palm species is popular for its ornate appearance. The Bismarckia nobilis has a thick, round trunk with interwoven leaf bases that produce vibrant cerulean fronds in a wide, fan-like pattern. This low-maintenance palm can grow to seventy feet tall and is resilient to short-term frosts.
2. 2. California fan palm: Also known as the desert fan palm, the Washingtonia filifera is native to the United States. This drought-tolerant palm’s natural habitat is in desert oases of the southwest United States. The trunk of the California fan is fire-resistant and provides shelter to a host of desert-dwelling birds, bats, and insects.
   
3. 3. Canary Island date palm: Also called the pineapple palm, Phoenix canariensis is native to the Canary Islands. It is a direct relative of the true date palm. This palm variety reproduces through seeds that can take hold in diverse climates and soils.
4. 4. Chinese fan palm: Also known as the fountain palm, Livistona chinensis is a fast-growing species native to Southeast Asia. In certain tropical regions of the world, like Hawaii, this plant is labeled a weed or invasive species due to its quick spreading.
5. 5. Cabbage palm: Also known as the sabal palm, Sabal palmetto is native to the Gulf of Mexico and the coastal plains in North Carolina and Florida. The cabbage palm has a long, slender trunk, similar to the Mexican fan palm, although it can survive much colder temperatures. Some cabbage palms have survived temperatures as low as eight degrees Fahrenheit for a short period of time.
6. 6. Date palm: This palm plant is common in Northern Africa and the Middle East, where growers use it in the commercial production of date fruits. Phoenix dactylifera grows from clumps of stems with a singular root system. These plants can reproduce from the seeds of fallen fruit or through pollination.
   
7. 7. Dwarf palmetto: These stunted palms thrive in full sun or shaded areas of humid swamps in South Carolina. However, Sabal minor is an adaptable palm that can take root in various soils. It is also one of the most frost-tolerant palm varieties of North America.
8. 8. European fan palm: Also known as the Mediterranean fan palm, Chamaerops humilis can produce up to eight short trunks that stem from a primary trunk. This shrub-like palm is native to Europe and can survive a wide range of temperatures.
9. 9. Mazari palm: This rare, shrub-like palm tree is native to Afghanistan and Pakistan but can adapt to diverse climates and soil types. Since Nannorrhops ritchiana thrives in high desert ecosystems of the Middle East, it can survive rapid changes in weather and temperature.
10. 10. Mexican blue palm: Also known as the blue hesper palm, Brahea armata is similar to palms trees in the Washingtonia genus in terms of appearance and preferred natural climate. However, this palm typically has a stronger, more robust trunk that can grow to a maximum height of fifty feet.
11. 11. Mexican fan palm: These iconic “skydusters” of the famous Sunset Strip in Los Angeles, California, can reach heights of eighty to a hundred feet tall. Washingtonia robustas was originally native to the Baja California Peninsula but has since become naturalized to arid desert climates worldwide. These palms have long, thin trunks that provide heavy fronds with a stable base but do little to protect them from extreme cold. Mexican fan palms can live for 500 years or more under the right conditions.
12. 12. Needle palm: Rhapidophyllum hystrix is native to warm, temperate coastal regions of the Southeast United States and produces long petioles from a clumped base. This palm’s plant base produces long needles to protect its petioles from predatory animals. Each long petiole produces eight to sixteen leaflets that spread out in a fan-like pattern.
    
13. 13. Pindo palm: Also known as the jelly palm, Butia capitata is short and stocky. It produces a large crown of vibrant blue-green fronds. These fronds can grow between three and six feet in length. The pindo palm can also bloom spiky, yellow flowers that give way to small edible fruits in the fall. These fruits ripen to the size of small plums and produce a sweet, citrusy pineapple flavor.
14. 14. Queen palm: Also known as the cocos palm, Syagrus romanzoffiana is an ornamental palm tree native to Brazil and other subtropical climates in South America. This palm tree gained widespread popularity among European horticulture enthusiasts in the early twentieth century, and it continues to be a favorite palm variety for landscaping today.
15. 15. Sago palm: The Cycas revoluta is not a true palm. Although it may share the appearance of small palms, the sago palm is actually a member of a seed-bearing plant group known as gymnosperms. You should handle this slow-growing plant with care because the stems contain a toxic starch. Sago starch can be harmful to humans and pets if they ingest it in its raw form.
16. 16. Saw palmetto palm: This slow-growing fan palm receives its common name from the many sharp, protective teeth that line the plant's petioles. Serenoa repens produces reddish-black drupe fruits, which are the primary food source for moth and butterfly larvae of the Lepidoptera order of insects.
17. 17. Windmill palm: Humans have been cultivating Trachycarpus fortunei, also known as the Chinese windmill palm, in the mountainous regions of China and Japan for thousands of years. This single-stemmed fan palm can self-reproduce by blooming male, female, and sometimes hermaphroditic flowers.

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