Quote:
Originally Posted by Happydaz
What incorrect comments did Ozzello make? He sounds more knowledgeable than the Master Gardeners who are posting on here. Saying the meaning of planting zones is based on where a particular plant will do well is not the whole story. Yes proper use of planting zone information will help your plants thrive but they will also help your plants SURVIVE. Foxtail palms and Christmas Palms will die here in zone 9. (Like Ozzello said) No doubt about it! In my neighborhood all the foxtail palms planted in two different yards died this past winter. They had made it for a number of years but not this one. As the county agent (and Master Gardener Coordinator) says the Villages is mostly in 9A and maybe a small part 9B. You probably should talk to her about planting zones. I don’t think it is a good idea to come on a forum and say you are a Master Gardener and disagree with a professional landscaper.
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It seems like Ozello doesn't fully understand that USDA climate zones can vary widely depending on what vendor you buy your trees from. Many of the same varieties of trees like palms for example are labelled as 9a, 9b or 10a even though they're the exact same tree. It's just a marketing ploy for the vendor selling it as a 9a tree to sell more. There's zero Federal laws that would stop a vendor from labelling a citrus tree to grow in zone 5 even though it would have zero chance of surviving the winter in a zone 5 area in Minnesota for example.
Also the climate zones continuously change, plus the maps are just a rough approximation of each zone, and not to mention the effect of microclimates that actually make a significant difference in some cases.