Discover the African
Palmyra Palm,
Borassus aethiopum, the Colossal Fan Palm,
Our Palm of the Month!
February,2002
This month's PALM OF THE MONTH, is the mammoth
Palmyra Palm. It is a palm of strength, beauty, and in its native range, a viable
source for nourishment of its citizenry! It is the storied signature palm of the
African savanna, and soothes the eyes of the apparent bareness of the torrid
grasslands.
 Its
Size: 15 to 18 metres
Min. Temperature: 22°F to 28°F (-6°C to -2°C)
Water Requirements: Regular watering required!
Sun Requirements: Light shade preferred when young.
Origin: Togo, Nigeria, India, Malaysia, & Senegal
Germination: Seeds take 2 to 4 weeks to germinate. The seed first emit a long
tap root (often over 2 feet - 60 cm), requiring a deep pot.
Leaf: Palmate
Trunk: smooth, grayish
Fruit: Black when ripe, orange flesh...6 inches long, 4 inches in diameter 15x10
cm), about 6 pounds (3 kg). Oblong.
Seed: 4 inches long (10 cm). roundish, covered with fibers.
The Palmyra Palms are dioecious, only the female  trees bear fruit. The
palm trees are tapped for juice. In some regions, the technique either involves the
lateral portion of the young stem and does not kill the tree. In other African
regions (as in Senegal), the trees are often tapped to death after several months.
The fruit is eaten, as are the flowers and the root.
B. aethiopum are native to Africa and prefer well
drained soil and do not take cold very well.
  
Two Borassus aethiopum at Fairchild
Tropical Garden blown over by Hurricane Andrew. These two huge specimens were later
righted and braced.
Photo by Will Houghton
Sub Family : Coryphoideae
Family : Palmae
Plant Type : Palm
Common Name : Palmyra palm or Toddy palm
Malaysian Name : Lontar
Features : Widely cultivated and fabled palmyra or toddy
palm of India where it finds hundreds of uses, for food, black timber, sugar and toddy.
Fruit : Female trees with big 12-20cm edible fruit: yellow
to brown and black. The intoxicating toddy is taken from the dense flower spikes.
Leaves : Rounded head of palmate gray-green leaves to 3m
across rather folded, rigid and with stiff tips, the stalk with horny thorns.
Height : Trunk 20-30m tall sometimes swollen above the
middle, to 1cm thick.
Suitability : Along highways, recommended for strategic
places such as Government Buildings, Libraries, Schools and Museums.
This palm is unique & stately and lends a decided tone of
permanence wherever seen; it is for these reasons that it has been proudly selected as
February,
2002's PALM OF THE MONTH!
Paul, "The Palm Doctor!"
|
