Question
Hi Nick:

We planted several windpalms around our pool are this summer.  Two are about 5 feet tall and the others two feet tall.  I live in North Georgia (south of Atlanta) in zone 8.  Is there anything I need to do to protect these trees for the winter?  Do they need to be covered or will that kill them?  
Also, we have two types of banana trees.  We have never done anything in the winter to protect them.  The green ones always come back the next year.  The purple ones do not.  What's the difference?  Anything we can do to protect them for the winter?  Thanks!

Answer
Hey Mike, ok, the palms should be ok with the radiance of warm vapor off the pool when the ambient air temps drop below the temp of the water itself; if you want to provide additional protection then a flood light reflecting on them should do the trick. The Bananas can be protected with a heavy mulching of the underground corm, the crown will still burn to ground level during a freeze, but the corm will send out new growth in the spring if it is insulated with the mulch. Nick