Time for a palm? Rhopalostylis sapida

I figured I should post about a palm as this blog is not specifically about my Cycads.  Here is Rhopalostylis sapida.  This palm originates from New Zealand and is capable of withstanding some pretty cold weather which makes it suitable for the Beaumont-Banning Pass area.  This species prefers partial sun until reaching a mature age.

The specimen is pretty young, but even at this young age, you can see the stout nature of the fronds.  They are quite thick in proportion to the leaves and are a dominant feature when observing the plant.  These thick, taut, fully rounded fronds allow for little to no sagging which gives this palm its amazing look.

The leaves are also quite stiff and stout and receive much of their strength from the petiole, which can be seen below in the picture below.

The constant upright and stout nature of this palm can even be seen at this early age in these profile shots.

 


All of these features make for a beautiful mature palm that stands out from common species especially in areas that experience a colder climate.  I can't wait for this palm to age into the beauty displayed below.

photo from wikipedia.

Dioon spinulosum

Here is a Cycad you won't find unless you go looking for it, Dioon spinulosum.  As you can see this has a similar structure to the common Cycas Revoluta (Sago Palm) and so it is easy to see the relationship although they are quite distant as far as Cycads go.  This species won't be found at big box home improvement stores, you will most definitely have to seek it out.

Notice how the leaves are flat across and do not angle up like Cyca Revoluta.  They are also much broader, a lighter green. and have a glossy tint to them.

Notice the very small spines that line the edge of each leaf. These are not really noticed when handling the plant.

The base near the stems is much more open to the outside world than a Sago and does not have sharp spines.  The caudex is also much smoother and delicate.  This caudex is about 4-5 inches, I'm guessing the plant is about 5 years in age.

You can also see that another Cycad of the same variety has grown right next to the primary caudex.  I have not investigated the growth to determine its source yet but Dioon spinulosum is not known for creating suckers.  However it is possible although unlikely for Dioon spinulosum to create suckers on the primary caudex.  (this one is quite far away)

The wind has tweaked some of the leaflets as you can see.  The Dioon spinulosum also, like mostly any plant, does not like to touch the gate as is apparent in this photo.  Notice the sunburn on some of the leaves.  This is due to the plant having grown up in shade and being replanted in sun.  Eventually the plant will fully acclimate although this specimen could actually use more shade.  There is Phoenix canariensis that stands between this Cycad and the sun.  Once the palm acclimates the Phoenix canariensis will grow very quickly and create large amounts of shade during the mid day sun.  Dioon spinulosum will thrive in a partially shaded environment.

Growth Update

I am about to post another entry on a Cycad but I figured I would post a growth update since I use these pictures to track growth for my own purposes.  Here is current a shot of Cycas Revoluta, referenced as specimen 2 in Cycas Revoluta.

  Here is a current photo of specimen 3.  Notice in both instances the new leaves have now darkened and hardened.

A new photo of the largest specimen of Zamia Furfuracea.  The slightly more green tone to the new leaves is apparent, especially at the extremity of the branch.  Fuzz or fur has also greatly dissipated on these new leaves.

Here is what Beaumont does to a Banana tree that was about 7 feet high.  The temperature never got to or below freezing.  This will come roaring back in Spring.  Actually there are three trees in this picture, the smaller two have been killed above the surface.  The roots of all these trees remain alive and well.