Characteristics
A solitary palm. It can grow to 30 m high. The trunk is slender and grey. It is about 35 cm across. The fronds are dark green and shiny and arch over. They are 3 m long. The leaves are feather like. The leaflets droop. The plant does not have thorns. It has a prominent crown-shaft. The flowering stalk is at the base of the crown-shaft. The flowers are of one sex but both sexes occur on the one plant. The fruit are in dense clusters. The fruit are red and sharply beaked. The fruit are 5-6 cm long.
| Life form |
perennial
|
| Growth form |
tree
|
| Growth support |
free-standing
|
| Foliage retention |
deciduous
|
| Sexuality |
-
|
| Pollination |
-
|
| Spread |
-
|
| Mature width (meter) |
-
|
| Mature height (meter) |
32.5
|
| Root system |
-
|
| Rooting depth (meter) |
-
|
| Root diameter (meter) |
-
|
| Flower color |
-
|
| Blooming months |
-
|
| Fruit color |
-
|
| Fruiting months |
-
|
| Nitrogen fixer |
-
|
| Photosynthetic pathway |
-
|
Environment
A tropical plant. They grow in forests and rainforests from sea level to moderate altitudes. It is relatively cold tolerant. It cannot survive frost. Young plants are best is a lightly shaded position. Mature plants can grow in full sun. They need an organically rich, well drained soil. In Fiji they grow from sea level to 800 m altitude. In Townsville palmetum.
| Light |
-
|
| Soil humidity |
-
|
| Soil texture |
-
|
| Soil acidity |
-
|
| Soil nutriment |
-
|
| Hardiness (USDA) |
|
Usage
The seeds are edible. They are eaten immature. The palm heart is edible and eaten raw.
Cultivation
Mature seed germinate easily. Germination can take 4-6 weeks or several months. Seedlings should not be allowed to dry out.
| Mode |
-
|
| Germination duration (days) |
-
|
| Germination temperacture (C°) |
-
|
| Germination luminosity |
-
|
| Germination treatment |
-
|
| Minimum temperature (C°) |
-
|
| Optimum temperature (C°) |
-
|
| Size |
-
|
| Vigor |
-
|
| Productivity |
-
|
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