Facts & Care Sheet

Maximum height: 8 feet, which it rarely reaches, normally they would reach a height of about 4 feet.

Maximum width(spread): About 3 to 5 feet.

Native Range: Mexico, Guatemala

Scientific Name: Chamaedora elegans

Other common name(s):  Neanthe Bella, Bella Palm, Good Luck Palm, Dwarf Fishtail Palm, Dwarf Palm

Growth rate: Very slow

Propagation: By seed, division and cutting

Sun: Bright indirect light to partial shade.

Water: Keep the soil evenly moist for most of the time. Allow the soil to dry slightly between waterings.

Soil: It should be well drained, else root-rot is a common problem with these plants.

Fertilizer requirements: Fertilize with a mild fertilizer. The roots of the Neanthe Bella palm are sensitive to over fertilizing. Do not fertilize in winter.

Poisonous: No

Drought Tolerance: Low

Cold Tolerance: 10a, 10b, 11 zones

Facts & Care Sheet

Maximum height: 8 to 10 feet

Maximum width(spread): About 8 to 10 feet.

Native range: Southeastern United States

Scientific name: Rhapidophyllum hystrix

Other common name(s): Porcupine palm

Growth rate: Slow

Propagation: By seeds, division of clumps. Seeds can take about 6 to 12 months to germinate.

Sun: Full sunlight to partial shade.

Water: Requires regular watering. The needle palm has amazing ability to tolerate both droughts and floods.

Soil: Well drained soil

Poisonous: No

Cold tolerance: Very high, can survive temperatures as low as -10 to -15 degrees Fahrenheit.

Drought tolerance: High

Fruit: Fruit of the needle palm is a brown drupe that is 2 cm long.

Facts & Care Sheet

Maximum height: 30 feet

Maximum width(spread): 12 to 15 feet

Native range: Madagascar

Scientific name: Dypsis decaryi

Propagation: From seeds

Growth rate: Moderate

Hardiness: High

Leaves: Large tough leaves

Sun: Prefers full sunlight but can also thrive in slight shade.

Water: Requires regular irrigation, let the soil around the plant moderately dry before watering it again.

Soil: Slightly towards the acidic side and sandy.

Poisonous: Yes. Its seeds and other parts can harm if ingested.

Cold Tolerance: Moderate, can tolerate cold temperatures as low as 25 degrees Fahrenheit.

Drought Tolerance: Moderate to low, can handle occasional dryness but normally should be watered regularly.

Fruit: The fruit is black in color and round in shape and normally is about 1 inch in diameter. It is not edible.

Propagation

The triangle palms are propagated by seeds and the seeds normally germinate within one month of being planted.

Facts & Care Sheet

Maximum height: About 35 feet

Maximum width(spread): About 20 feet

Native Range: Northern Australia

Scientific name: Wodyetia bifurcata

Growth rate: Moderate to fast

Propagation: Through seed

Leaves: Large

Sun: Full sun is better. It will also thrive in partial shade.

Water: Water it regularly

Soil: Any kind of general purpose soil.

Fertilizer requirements: Fertilizing once or twice a year is enough.

Poisonous: Yes, seeds are poisonous and can cause health problems on ingestion.

Cold tolerance: Although it thrives better in warmer temperatures, they can tolerate colder temperatures down to about 26 degrees Fahrenheit.

Drought tolerance: Moderate

Fruit: Orange to green fruit in earlier stages. The 2 inch long ripe fruit is orange red.

Facts & Care Sheet

The Coconut Palm

Maximum height: About 80 to 100 feet

Maximum width(spread): 20 to 30 feet

Native range: The origin of this palm tree has been a subject of debate. While most authorities say that the coconut palm is a native of South Asia, others claim its native range to be South America. It is also important to note that some fossil records of a coconut-like plant that was smaller in size has been found in New Zealand. These fossil records are about 15 million years old. Interestingly, even more older records have been found in India, while the oldest is from Bangladesh.

Scientific name: Cocos nucifera

Growth rate: Moderate to fast

Propagation: By planting a fresh coconut in moist soil.

Leaves: It has big hard leaves.

Sun: Place them in areas with bright and direct sunlight.

Water: Water thoroughly and frequently the well-drained sol around it.

Soil: Sandy soil with a preferred pH of 5.0 to 8.0.

Temperature: Moderate, 72 degrees Fahrenheit.

Poisonous: No

Cold tolerance: Can bear cold temperatures of 20 to 30 degrees Fahrenheit.

Drought tolerance: Very high

Fruit: The famous coconut which is consumed by people around the globe.

Propagation

Propagation is done from a coconut. Take a fresh coconut and listen for sloshing milk when you shake it. Soak it in water witht the husk intact. Then take a container and fill it with well drained, sandy soil. Plant the coconut pointed downwards into the container. Now one thing you will have to make sure if you want the nut to sprout and that is to never let the soil dry. Water frequently so that it stays moist. The soil should be moist, not wet. place it at a sunny location. The plant will sprout from one of the three holes.

Facts & Care Sheet

Maximum Height: 60 feet, mostly they grow about 40 feet tall.

Maximum width(spread): 15 to 20 feet

Native Range: Island of Madagascar

Scientific name: Bismarckia nobilis

Growth rate: Slow

Propagation: By seeds

Hardiness: High, it is really hard to kill this palm.

Leaves: Big coarse leaves

Sun: Full sun to partial shade.

Water: Irrigate the plant on a regular basis.

Soil: Well drained, sandy.

Poisonous: No

Cold tolerance: Can withstand cold temperatures as low as 20 degrees Fahrenheit.

Drought tolerance: Moderate

Fruit: A round fleshy fruit which is 1 to 3 inches in length and about a half inch in diameter. The fruit is not edible.

Facts & Care Sheet

Maximum height: Above 30 feet

Maximum width(spread): 10 to 15 feet

Native Range: Mexico, the semi-desert regions of southeastern Mexico to be exact.

Scientific Name: Beaucarnea Recurvata

Other common name(s): Bottle palm, elephant foot, Nolina palm

Growth rate: Slow

Propagation: By removal of basal offsets, seeds and stem cutting of multi-stemmed ponytail palms

Leaves: Long, thin and soft leaves

Sun: bright sunlight, also thrives in direct sunlight.

Water: Water thoroughly once a week. Water requirements vary with temperatures, atmosphere, zones etc. Remember it is a succulent and should not be over-watered, letting its soil dry won’t really harm it.

Soil: Fast draining, sandy

Fertilizer requirements: Very low

Temperature: Warm, arid temperature

Poisonous: No

Cold tolerance: Not very good at tolerating cold. Temperatures below 30 degrees Fahrenheit for extended periods can harm this palm tree.

Drought tolerance: Very high

Propagation

By Seed

By Offset removal

Ponytail Palm

Facts & Care Sheet

Maximum height: 60 feet

Maximum width(spread): 15 to 20 feet

Native range: Lord Howe Island

Scientific name: Howea forsteriana

Other common name(s): Thatch palm, sentry palm

Growth rate: Slow

Propagation: By seeds

Hardiness: Moderate

Sun: Bright indirect sunlight is preferred. They will also tolerate lower light levels.

Water: Being native to a tropical area, they prefer the soil to be moist most of the times. However, allow the top 1 to 2 inches of soil to dry before watering it again. The Kentia palm will die of continual dryness or over watering.

Soil: Soil that is rich in organic matter and well-drained.

Fertilizer requirements: Fertilize in summers for a better health.

Poisonous: No

Fruit: Oval shaped, 2 inch in diameter.

Cold tolerance: Moderate, Can tolerate temperatures down to 23 degrees Fahrenheit. However, such low temperatures for an extended period can harm the plant.

Drought tolerance: Moderate to low

Propagation

Propagation is done by seeds. Normally palm seeds germinate properly in when kept in warmer temperatures, however the Kentia palm is an exception in this regard, maybe due to being a native of Lord Howe Island. They can germinate in lower temperatures of 50 degrees Fahrenheit, nut warmer temperature is preferred. The Kentia palm seeds normally take 1 to 3 months for the germination process to complete.

Beautiful Kentia Palms (Image property of Black Diamond Images @ Flicker)

Facts & Care Sheet

Maximum Height: About 25 feet

Maximum Width(spread): 15 feet

Native Range: Central-southern Brazil and adjacent areas of Uruguay and Argentina.

Scientific name: Butia capitata

Other Common Name(s): Jelly palm, wine palm

Growth rate: Moderate to slow

Propagation: By seed

Sun: Full sunlight to partial shade.

Water: Water regularly

Soil: They will adapt to most soil conditions so soil is not a problem.

Fertilizer Requirements: Although they will thrive without a fertilizer but it is good to fertilize them a few times in spring.

Poisonous: No

Cold tolerance: High, can tolerate colder temperatures as low as about 10 to 15 degrees Fahrenheit.

Drought tolerance: High

Fruit: Delicious edible fruit with large seeds which is used to make jams and jellies. The fruit is oval shaped and about one inch long having yellow to orange colors.

Propagation

Propagate through seeds by germinating them in zip-lock bags with moisture or moist soil mix.

The bamboo palm is a beautiful, commonly kept houseplant that also works as an air purifier. Here is some information on them.

Maximum height: 8 to 10 feet

Maximum width(spread): 3 to 5 feet

Native Range: Rainforests of Central and Southern America.

Scientific Name: Chamaedorea seifrizii

Other common name(s): Reed palm

Growth rate: Moderate

Propagation: By seed, division of clumps, sucker removal.

Hardiness: Not a hardy plant and requires some care.

Leaves: Small to medium sized soft leaves.

Sun: Do not place it at sunny locations as it grows under the shade of thick rainforest trees in its native range, place them in moderate indirect light.

Water: Being a tropical plant, requires the soil to be wet but not soggy. Also, the soil should be well drained so the roots don’t get exposed to standing water.

Soil: well drained, rich soil.

Fertilizer Requirements: Fertilize rarely in summers with a mild fertilizer. If you can, water it with rain-water because it acts as a natural fertilizer and this plant being native to rainforests is used to heavy rains.

Poisonous: Leaves and fruits are poisonous to some pets.

Cold Tolerance: It is a sensitive plant and Will get affected with temperatures under 50 degrees Fahrenheit.

Drought tolerence: None at all.

Temperature: moderate, 60 to 85 degrees Fahrenheit.

Propagation

This plant can be propagated in 3 different ways:

1. From seeds
2. By division of clumps
3. By sucker removal