Rhapidophyllum hystrix
(Pursh) H. Wendl. & Drude
Needle palm
iNaturalist· cc-by-nc
(c) Alvin Diamond, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
iNaturalist· cc-by-nc
(c) Alvin Diamond, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
iNaturalist· cc-by-nc
(c) Alvin Diamond, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
Description
A small clumping palm. It grows to 1 m tall. The trunk is 8-10 cm across. It often creeps along the ground. It can roots producing suckers. The shoots have about 15 leaves. They spread out like fingers on a hand. The sheath around the leaf has many soft fibres. The leaf stalks are smooth on the edges. The blade is split into several leaflets. They are silvery white underneath. The flower stalks are among the leaves. The flowers are are covered with 4-6 bracts. Often trees are separately male or female. The fruit have one seed. They are round and brownish. They are covered with hairs but these are easily rubbed off. The fruit are 1 cm across.
Edible Uses
The fruit are edible.
Distribution
It grows in wet places at low elevations in the southern United States. It can tolerate cold down to - 20°C.
Where It Grows
North America, USA,
Notes
There is only one Rhapidophyllum species.
Synonyms
References (3)
- O. Drude, Bot. Zeitung (Berlin) 34:803-804. 1876
- Hedrick, U.P., 1919, (Ed.), Sturtevant's edible plants of the world. p 555
- Henderson, A., Galeano, G and Bernal, R., 1995, Field Guide to the Palms of the Americas. Princeton. p 51
