Trunks numerous, crowded, to 3 m long, 3 cm wide, pale bluish-green. Leaves to 1.5 m long, obliquely erect to stiffly arching, dark green, with numerous narrow, dark green, shiny leaflets. Flowers small, yellow. Fruit globose, greenish black to black.
Central America
Very commonly sold in chain stores as an indoor plant (often incorrectly named C. erumpens H.E. Moore). Also excellent outdoors in a sheltered position. In its natural state the unopened male inflorescences are cooked as a vegetable (pacaya).
C. costaricana Oerst. from Central America is a small clustering palm. Stems to 3 m tall, slender, crowded. Leaves to 50 cm long, with dull green crowded leaflets. Panicles to 30 cm long. Fruit about 1 cm across, globose, red. Becoming widely planted. Forms a dense spreading clump.Will tolerate some sun but leaves can become bleached. Young plants need shade. A good container plant.
C. graminifolia H.Wendl. from Central America has numerous trunks, crowded, to 3 m tall, 5 cm wide, often leafy to the base. Leaves to 1.5 m long, arching, with numerous narrow, dark green leaflets. Fruit globose, about 1 cm across, black. Grows in cool moist forests, often on limestone. An excellent ornamental palm with a dense habit.
C. microspadix Burret, Bamboo Palm from Mexico has numerous trunks, often well spaced, to 3 m tall, 3 cm wide, yellowish-green. Leaves to 1.5 m long, obliquely erect to stiffly arching, dark green, with coarse, dull green moderately spaced leaflets, the terminal ones united like a fish tail. Fruit globose, bright red. Frequently grown in subtropical and warm temperate regions. Grows well in a shady location although plants will tolerate considerable exposure to sun.
C. tepejilote Liebm., Pacaya Palm from C America to Colombia has a solitary or clustering habit, to 7 m tall, often with prop roots. Leaves to 1 m long, feathershaped, spreading widely, arching, bright green. Flowers greenish-yellow, fragrant. Fruit about 1.5 cm long, ovoid, black. A fast-growing species which can be grown in warm temperate zones. Best planted in groups. The unopened male inflorescences are cooked as a vegetable (pacaya).
Source: (2005). Arecaceae. In: . Horticultural Flora of South-eastern Australia. Volume 5. Flowering plants. Monocotyledons. The identification of garden and cultivated plants. University of New South Wales Press.
