Park of Palms: Part II

Last time we explored the Park of Palms in downtown Fort Myers, Florida, in Park of Palms: Part I. There are at least 37 palms and many are familiar landscaping palms, like this Washingtonian palm. Though it isn’t as common here as in Southern California.

Washingtonian Palm

European Fan Palm

This fan palm, also known scientifically as Chamaerops humilis, is a very popular landscape palm due to its cold tolerance down to USDA hardiness zone 7b. Its short height, at about 10 feet, makes it a good landscape feature.

Spindle Palm

This palm, Hyophorbe verschaffeltii, is a common landscape palm. Considered a self-cleaning palm, due to fronds that easily tear off creating a smooth grey trunk, they grow up to 20 feet tall. They swell at the center of their trunk similar to the bottle palm. They have beautiful pinnate, or feather-like, v-shaped fronds that get up to 10 feet wide. This palm had two inflorescences, with small cream-colored flowers.

Majesty Palm

A common houseplant, Ravenea rivularis, is a shade tolerant palm. They grow quickly to 10 feet and get as high as 20 feet tall. When low to the ground their crowns are more uniform, but seem to diverge with height. The trunk also swells toward the bottom.

Betelnut Palm

The betelnut palm, Areca catechu, is native to India, SE Asia and Malaysia. It’s a relative to the coconut palm or Cocos nucifera. This palm is less tolerant of cooler climates. The common name, betelnut, comes from the piper betle, a mint tasting leaf, that inhabitants chew in conjunction with the nut produced by the betelnut palm.

The following palms are some that I’ve never seen before and certainly aren't common to SW Florida in my limited experience.

Yellow Latan Palm

This palm, Latania verschaffeltii, comes from the Mascarene Islands off the coast of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean. This is a small specimen, but they seem to get up to 20 feet tall. They are used as an ornamental, but their habitat is threatened and they are considered endangered.

Talipot Palm

Corypha umbraculifera, this magnificent palm is one of the largest in the world. It is originally from India and can grow to 100 feet with a trunk over three feet in diameter. The palmate fronds, fan-like, grow up to 21 feet across and a single palm tree may have 130 leaflets. This specimen stands about 30 feet tall with hardly a trunk.

Silver Queen

Its scientific name is Syagrus sp. and it has the look of a queen palm. Its name comes from the whitish cast under the fronds on mature plants that reflect silver in the sun. It originates in Brazil and gets to 40 feet tall and has a cold tolerance down to 15 degrees F. Its position in the park made it difficult to get a good close shot of the crown.

Gingerbread Palm

Also known as doum palm and scientifically as Hyphaene thebaica. A native to North Africa, it grows up to 56 feet high with palmate leaves up to 70 inches wide. It produces an edible fruit (see below) with one seed.

Lady Palm

Also known as Rhapis Palm and scientifically as Rhapis excelsa. This palm tree can tolerate most environments, dry, wet, indoors and outdoors. The palm grows through underground rhizomes, spreading as wide as it is high. It grows to a maximum height of five to 10 feet and one to five feet wide.

Next time, join me for more exotic palms in Park of Palms: Part III.

Park of Palms: Part I

Fort Myers, Florida, known as the City of Palms, has an old park dedicated to them in downtown, the Park of Palms. Unfortunately there isn’t much information about this park, expect this plaque and the 37 different palms in this small park. In this post we’ll look at some of the more common ones used in SW Florida as landscape palms.

Sabal Palm

The state tree of Florida, also known as the cabbage palm, has a solitary trunk with a compact crown. Palms are known for their crown of evergreen leaves. These leaves are palmately or fan-shaped.

Canary Island Date Palm

This Phoenix canariensis is one of my favorites. It grows from 40 to 60 feet tall with a wonderfully large 20 to 40 foot spread and 20 foot long pinnated or feather-like shaped leaves. The leaves on the specimen below are so long they hide its trunk.

Adonidia Palm

Also known as Veitchia merrilli or Christmas palm due to its red berries is a self-cleaning palm. When the fronds die they easily peal off leaving a very clean looking trunk unlike a lot of its fellow palms that have a crosshatch trunk once leaves are removed.

Coconut Palm

Or Cocos nucifera is a tropical palm found commonly in the Western Pacific and often conjures images of sunny destinations. They grow 50 to 80 feet tall with 15 to 17 foot long pinnates of olive green.

Fishtail Palm

Caryota mitis is an unusual looking palm with a bi-pinnated leaf resembling a fish’s tail. This palm grows in clusters from the ground unlike the solitary palms that have one growing point on top.

Areca Palms

Known as Dypisis lutescens, these palms also grow in a cluster. They are commonly used as a screening hedge for privacy as the different heights of growth tend to resemble more of a bush than a tree. When manicured, like the specimen below, you can see the trunks.

Bottle Palm

Hyophorbe lagenicaulis has a unique round base. Their curved striking pinnated leaves usually number 6 to 7. Their slow growth, usually to 10 feet, make for interesting landscape features.

Triangle Palm

Neodypsis decay has a very unique geometrical shape. The pinnated fronds grow from three different sections forming a unique crown.

Pygmy Date Palm

This common palm, also known as Phoenix roebelenii, is popular for its small compact and distinct form. A popular focal point found in pots or a bordered flower garden.

Silver Bismark Palm

This Bismarkia nobilis has huge palmated leaves with an unusual silver-grey coloring. They can have big crowns and add a striking dimension to the landscape.

Royal Palm

Roystonea regis have self-cleaning trunks like the adonidia. These palms grow tall up to 80 feet. Thomas Edison, the famed inventor, had a mile of them planted along his  Seminole Lodge Estate in Fort Myers. The city later added more miles of them inspiring the name; the City of Palms.

Next time we’ll look at some  uncommon palms in Park of Palms: Part II.