Phoenix roebelenii J. O'Brien

Dwarf Date Palm

Dwarf solitary palm. Trunk to 2 m tall, slender, woody, grey. Leaves arching in a rounded crown, bright green, shiny. Leaflets very narrow, arranged in a flat plane. Flowers cream, densely crowded, in arching panicles to about 1 m long. Fruit slender, about 1 cm long, black when ripe.

Laos

Grows near streams in sparse forest.

An attractive palm which is a very popular container plant, being successfully used on patios, verandahs and indoors. Also a popular garden plant which looks decorative in combination with water features. The fruit have a thin layer of edible flesh.

Dwarf solitary palm with a slender grey woody trunk and a rounded crown of bright green, shiny feather-shaped leaves with the leaflets arranged in a flat plane.

NSW: Sydney (Royal Botanic Garden Sydney). Vic: Melbourne (Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria (Melbourne Gardens)).

Barrow (1994).

 

P. loureiri Kunth from India and Hong Kong has a solitary trunk to 3 m tall and 12 cm wide, covered with woody leaf bases. Leaves to 1.5 m long, dark green. Leaflets narrow, arranged in several planes. Fruit about 1.2 cm long, ellipsoid, dark purple. A decorative small palm easily confused with P. roebelenii but much less commonly grown.

P. pusilla Lour., Ceylon Date Palm from Sri Lanka has a solitary trunk to 3 m tall and 15 cm wide, densely covered with woody leaf bases. Leaves to 2 m long, grey green to glaucous. Leaflets narrow, arranged in several planes. Fruit about 1.5 cm long, ellipsoid, red to violet. [P. zeylanica Trimen]. An attractive small palm which is very adaptable in cultivation.The fruits have a thin layer of edible flesh.

P. rupicola T. Anders, Cliff Date Palm from India has a trunk to 5 m tall, covered with persistent woody leaf bases. Leaves arching to drooping in a rounded crown, bright green, shiny, often with a hanging skirt of dead leaves. Leaflets arranged in a flat plane. Flowers cream, densely crowded in arching panicles to about 2 m long. Fruit about 1.5 cm long, purplish-red when ripe. It grows naturally among boulders and on rocky slopes, cliffs and gorges. An attractive palm which is grown on a limited scale, mainly in temperate regions. Valued for its neat crown of arching, shiny leaves. Plants can produce suckers. Recognized as a moderate sized solitary or suckering palm with a slender trunk covered with woody leaf bases and a rounded crown of slender arching bright green feather-shaped leaves with the leaflets arranged in a flat plane. Specimens can be seen at Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria (Melbourne Gardens) and Royal Botanic Garden Sydney.

Source: Jones, D; Spencer, R. (2005). Arecaceae. In: Spencer, R.. Horticultural Flora of South-eastern Australia. Volume 5. Flowering plants. Monocotyledons. The identification of garden and cultivated plants. University of New South Wales Press.

Hero image
Distribution map
kingdom Plantae
phylum   Tracheophyta
class    Magnoliopsida
superorder     Lilianae
order      Arecales
family       Arecaceae
genus        Phoenix L.