Full sun. A desert fan palm, made most famous by its use on the boulevards of Southern California. It’s much taller and slimmer than the similar California Fan Palm, and much more drought tolerant. It can be distinguished from similar species by the tendency of its drooping leaves to remain green about the skirt.
As its desert heritage implies, Mexican fan palm is not tolerant of subfreezing temperatures, especially when combined with ice; dead robustas can be found after record freezes in San Antonio. (Allowing the shaggy skirt of leaves to remain around the trunk may help insulate the trunk, but it’s difficult to protect the crown.)
