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thewisegardener.com's
Palm of the Month Award-Winner!

Livistona chinensis Chinese Fan Palm

The Chinese Fan Palm, Livistona chinensis, is actually found growing naturally throughout SE Asia, the Pacific Islands, and also on the Horn of Africa, all the way into the Persian Gulf area, as well as in its "namesake" region: Southern China!  Its wide area of adaptivity, of course as you might imagine, is indicative of a palm that is basically "happy" in some rather diverse climates, including those with bountiful rainfall, or in those regions of rather scanty yearly rains.  It takes heat like can be found in the Persian Gulf Region where 45 degrees C. is not uncommon, but can also thrive at 0 degrees C.!  It is essentially, a subtropical palm, that can be found doing nicely, naturalised in some rather "temperate" climates!

These palms are generally, solitary palms, that CAN grow rather tall (growing to about 12 metres, or 40 ft.), with often, persistant leaf bases.  Their leaves are large, and certainly, quite "tropical-looking"!  The leaves are a "spring" medium-green, and the blade is divided into many narrow single-fold segments which are split terminally.  The edge of the leaf flares downward, so that the overall effect is of a recurving leaf!  Very decorative, indeed, friends!

The fruit, which is bluish-green, sets mostly bisexually, so one trees fruits are probably all fertile, and sprout very readily!  This is a nice "bonus" as your Chinese Fan Palm reaches the age of about 5-7 years...You should be able to supply the neighbourhood with many young Chinese Fan Palms!  (Your neighbours WILL love you, for it!)

The Chinese Fan Palm is a popularly grown palm around the world, as it has architectural form, looking great among your home's foundation landscaping; is not too massive, usually, to look "out-of-scale" with your home & lot; and the biggest reason for its widespread usage, is its good tolerance of cold, for such a tropical-looking landscape palm!  Its range is really anywhere temperatures stay above about 22 degrees F, or -6 degrees Celsius!  Even if it gets damaged irregularly by a particularly cold winter "spell", it recovers nicely, and by summer's end, it looks totally "unscathed!"

For all the above reasons, thewisegardener.com has chosen the Livistona chinensis as our

July, 2001: "Palm of the Month"!  Enjoy growing your OWN Chinese Fan Palm, friends!

Paul, "The Wise Gardener!"