We're in Zone 8b. Has anyone been able to keep one of these alive past a couple of years? I plan to re-pot it to a larger pot.

I got 4 last year. I put 2 in my greenhouse and 2 in the front of my shop where my bananas and palms and medinilla magnifica do great. All 4 died, don't know why.

They are very tender palms, and grow out on the barrier islands here but it's too cold in winter at my house for them. They need lean soil and fairly light water, too.

There's a viral disease called 'lethal yellowing' that gets a fairly large percentage of young ones as well, from what I've heard. If you grow one from a coconut like Sandi did, and if the parent tree had the disease, the baby may have it passed on through the nut.

Coconut loves high temps, very high humidity and full sun, and lots of water, like heavy moonsoon rain type of watering. It is very common in the tropics, like the Phils, along the coastlines. It thrives so well there too since rainy season there is quite long, about 6 months.

We had huge coconut palms around our house at Hickam AFB in Honolulu. The Samoans would come every year in big truck to shinny up and trim the trees. The palm fronds were like thunder when they fell. I never thought about growing one here, but it was a good buy from Whole Foods (so it can't possibly have any diseases ). It was already potted up.

I was just curious how long anyone had managed to keep one alive. A friend has one that's two yrs old. It doesn't look much bigger than this one. I have formed no great attachment to it because we're in drought conditions now, but will probably face a cold winter. I just think it is at least going to make it through the summer as a conversation piece. I don't want to purposely kill it, though. I'll plant it in a little larger pot and dunk it in the pond occasionally.

Appreciate the responses. Always good information at ATP!

Sometimes there are just some tropicals that will not thrive very well here. But it is nice to attempt one, sometimes plants surprise us with their resilience.

You're so right!