Common plant names can be misleading: consider the names “ponytail palm,” “cardboard palm,” and “sago palm,” none of which are palms!
Ponytail “palm” is planted in the front landscapes of some lucky Valencia Reserve homes; you can identify it by its wide trunk base, reminiscent of an elephant’s foot plus long, thin leaves that hang down, reminiscent of a ponytail! Three-hundred- fifty- year-old specimens can be found in its native Mexico. The Garden of Extremes at Mounts Botanical Garden in West Palm Beach has a very unusual specimen: it has variegated white and green leaves rather than the usual plain green. Ponytail “palms” are in the agave family, the only similarity to palms being that they are warm-climate, flowering plants that have a trunk topped with leaves. The cardboard “palm” is planted at the front entrance of VR, at the pool, and at residents’ homes. The thick leaves feel like cardboard. This short, shrub-like plant is a cycad, not a palm, and the two are not even closely related. Cycads are a plant type that grew before, during, and after the dinosaurs; palms only evolved at the end of the dinosaur age. Cycads reproduce with male and female cones; palms reproduce with flowers. The sago “palm” is another cycad that is also planted in front of many VR homes. Very green, very shiny leaves form a lovely rosette. The slow growth rate makes it a suitable container plant; after fifty years, the trunk can reach ten feet. Sago is a type of starchy food, usually obtained from the stems of certain palms; but sago can also be obtained from this cycad, if it is carefully prepared, since this plant is poisonous. The ponytail palm is Beaucarnea recuvata, the cardboard palm is Zamia furfuracea, and the sago palm is Cycas revoluta. Note to grandparents , pet owners, and all other people: If ingested, cycads, including cardboard palms and sago palms, are poisonous to humans, dogs, cats, and horses; all parts are toxic, especially the seeds.
0 Comments
Alexandra palm is NOT a palm for landscaping your house; it can reach forty to sixty feet tall and is best used in large public spaces. It has a single, tall, one-foot-in-diameter, gray trunk, crowned by large feather-like leaves, and adorned by dramatic clusters of bright red fruits. (Don’t be misled by the word “fruits.” That doesn’t mean you can eat them: in botany-speak “fruits” just means the seeds and their coverings.) Birds do eat these fruits, and a flock may come and eat all of them in one sitting!
Alexandra palm was named for Alexandra of Denmark, the woman who became queen-empress after the death of Queen Victoria in 1901. She is remembered as a beautiful and charming queen, despite facing difficulties. Therefore, although this palm is sometimes called the King Alexander palm, the King palm, or the Alexander palm, these names are all incorrect: the most accurate common name is Alexandra palm. The botanical name is Archontophoenix alexandrae. Alexandra palm is native to Queensland, where it was discovered for science by a German-Australian plant explorer who named it in 1875 to honor Alexandra while she was Princess of Wales. Archontophoenix alexandrae grows in coastal rainforests of Queensland; it easily survives the heavy rains, making it the dominant species in the area— the good news being that it is not endangered in the wild. Have you ever eaten “hearts of palm”? Found inside the top of the trunk, the “heart” is composed of folded-up, baby palm leaves that look like a cabbage. The “heart” of an Alexandra palm is particularly prone to fatal shattering. As this palm is dug up from a field and transported to its new home, its “heart” can be broken, and the transplanted palm will not survive. Because of this, the crown of an Alexandra palm should be splinted and supported during transport. Alexandra palm hearts are not eaten; other palm species supply that dish. Alexandra palm’s height necessitates a bucket truck for grooming— another reason not to plant it by your house. While its leaves are self-pruning i.e., they fall off naturally after they die, it can be best to cut off those red fruits before they drop 1) to prevent a mess and 2) to prevent “volunteer” seedlings from sprouting all around. Enjoy all the Alexandra palms planted in the public spaces of Valencia Reserve. Amazingly, they flower on and off all year, and so there are red fruits to liven up the landscape in every season. |
Katherine Wagner-Reiss has her botany Certificate from the New York Botanical Garden, where she is a volunteer tour guide.
|