Palm trees have become a recognizable part of Vancouver's horticultural landscape, especially in the English Bay area, but whose idea was it to plant them around the city in the first place?
The trees – a hardy palm called the Trachycarpus fortunei or windmill palm – aren't native to the region but are found in China, Burma, and North India where they grow in cold climates.
In fact, these sturdy trees are suited to survive below-freezing temperatures (as low as minus 20 degrees and up to 2,400 meters in elevation) as long as ice does not get into the crown of the palm, in which case the palm tree will die.
Since this rarely happens in Vancouver, the approximately 60 palm trees planted around the city continue to flourish, sometimes blooming green and yellow flowers.
So what are they doing here?
The palm trees can be credited to Rudi Pinkowski, a palm enthusiast living in Vancouver.
In the mid to late 80s he approached the Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation with the idea to plant the hardy palms along Beach Avenue, the Park Board tells V.I.A.
"Originally there were only around 12 palms planted but they turned out to be so popular that more were added over the years," the Park Board adds.
Thank you, Rudi!
