Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.
Can't find the answer in our existing FAQs, submit a question to Mr. Smarty Plants.
Need help with plant identification, visit the plant identification page.
From: New Oxford, PA
Region: Mid-Atlantic
Topic: Seed and Plant Sources
Title: Growing non-native and exotic plants in New Oxford PA
Answered by: Barbara Medford
We are afraid we are not going to be able to help you very much. The palms are all tropical and sub-tropical in origin, and while they are often grown in "palm houses" in large botanical gardens, they are not suited for residential planting as far north as Pennsylvania. Adams County is in USDA Hardiness Zone 6a to 6b, and your average annual minimum temperatures range from -10 to 0 deg. F. That does not fall into "tropical or sub-tropical." Furthermore, to the best of our knowledge, none of the palms are native to North America but to the (what else?) tropics. We found an article from which you might get some more information from Sun Palm Trees, Cold and Hardy Palm Trees. This article describes "hardy" as being able to survive down to 18 deg. F. Doesn't sound much like Pennsylvania, does it?
There is one tree, Sabal palmetto (Cabbage palmetto), native to North American coastal areas from Florida to South Carolina. That is not a true palm, and this USDA Plant Profile does not show the plant growing any farther north than North Carolina.
To move on to your other question about suppliers of exotic and unusual plant seeds; by definition, these are almost all going to be non-natives to North America. The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center is dedicated to the growth, propagation and protection of plants native not only to North America but to the area in which the plants are being grown. When we Googled on "exotic plants," we got several websites, some of which do not sell seeds, and some of which will ship only to the West Coast, etc. One you could check out is WorldPlants.com Unusual Plants, Rare Plants, Exotic Plants. Unless you are planning to build a large, year-round greenhouse, we're pretty sure none of these are going to last more than a few minutes in the Pennsylvania Winter. Sorry.
Smarty Plants for Mission, TX
August 11, 2005 - Last week I visited my uncle who is head of a church in Mission, TX. The
church owns an empty 2 to 3 acre lot, where they hope to build a school
someday. However, that day is at least 10 to 15 years...
view the full question and answer
Native trees with beautiful fall foliage
November 18, 2008 - Dear Mr. Smarty Plants, This fall I have been seeing a tree with beautiful red leaves all over Austin and someone told me that these are Chinese tallow trees. Can you tell me where I might buy one of...
view the full question and answer
Source for Carex blanda in Washington DC
September 03, 2009 - Dear Mr. Smarty Plants,
After reading your recommendations, Carex blanda seems to be a suitable evergreen native plant for a small pond island planter I am making for our small backyard turtle pond....
view the full question and answer
Inoculant for bluebonnets
October 08, 2007 - Where can I find inoculant for my bluebonnets? I have searched high and low. Native American Seeds does not carry it. I can buy it for soybeans in a huge quantity, but am not sure that this is the ...
view the full question and answer
Sources for native plants wholesale in Boston, MA
October 31, 2003 - My professor and I are looking for a list of native plant wholesale nurseries in the Boston, MA region.
view the full question and answer
![]() |
Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today. Mr. Smarty Plants wants you to be his Facebook friend. Click the Facebook icon to add yourself to Mr. Smarty Plants list of friends. |