It is Heather's palm. She said, "My brother gave it to me as a birthday gift when I was in high school."
A palm tree as a present for a high school girl?
"My brother has a habit of giving gifts that make one think."
I'm not sure what Heather thought then, but I think she is very good with trees, because the palm has thrived for 30 years.
And that's the problem.
The tree was a metre tall when she got it, but it is perhaps seven metres tall now, and is threatening to poke its way through the skylight, out of the house and into the open air.
In a slow and stately, palm-like manner.
Ian said, "It's a conversation piece." As in: say, that's some big tree you have in the foyer. Heather said, "I think all our friends know we have to do something."
She would give it away.
Thing is, it needs a good home. Heather loves her tree. She said, "I water it every day. I give it tropical plant food once a month. I've repotted it three times in the last 15 years. It's desperately in need of repotting now."
She is not sure what kind of palm it is. I am no botanist, but I do not think it is a date palm or a royal palm, a cabbage or a sugar palm, and certainly not a palmetto. No matter what it is, not everyone can handle such a tall one.
Ian said, "I called the zoo. They said the animals would rip it apart. I called Edwards Gardens. They said they didn't have the space. I put it on Craigslist, twice. A few people replied, but nobody followed up."
Heather said, "One person said she'd come and get it with her car."
Oh, dear. You cannot put a 24-foot palm tree in your car, and you certainly cannot strap it to the roof of the old sedan and drive away. The tree should go to someone who will care for it properly.
Ian said, "People who know Heather well know she develops strong bonds ... if it were to die, there would be tears for weeks. Finding a good home for it is important."
There are several big trees in the Blumers' backyard – a locust, a maple, a Russian olive. But those are outdoor trees.
The palm?
Not outdoors, not here.
Ian said, "If we found the right place for the tree, I'd pay for a truck to get it there."
Let's think about this.
The Blumers are both doctors. You'd think the tree would look good in the atrium of one of the hospitals.
Or it might look good up at York University. Or in the Toronto Reference Library.
My own first thought was that it would fit in nicely at the Allan Gardens Conservatory, which actually has a Palm House.
Perhaps you have thoughts of your own, and can let me know. Or perhaps you have a very big house in which the only thing missing is seven metres' worth of palm.
Ian said, "When it goes, she will be crying." Heather said, "The best scenario is, it will go somewhere I can visit it."
If the palm finds a new home, I hope her brother will also visit. Because that was quite a thoughtful gift, all those years ago.
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