Domesticating the Wild Palm: A Survey of Palms and Their Culture Suitable for California and the Pacific Coast

摘要

I intend to give a general overview of the care, selection, and cultural requirements of some of the palms used in Southern California. The palm family has 2800 different species, with over 200 genera, 20 to 30 of which are found in Southern California. Palms are monocots so they have some very unique characteristics. Stems are comprised of vascular bundles rather than a continuous vascular system. It is nearly impossible to girdle a palm and they can also be planted deeper than the original crown. Amajority of our palms are solitary or single trunk and have one apical bud. You cannot cut the top out of the tree to produce secondary growth. Palms have a temporary root system that is in continual process of losing old and initiating new roots. Thisoccurs at a higher rate when soil and air temperatures are warm. The bulk of root systems are usually in the top surface of the soil mass (4 to 6 ft). An ideal time to transplant palms is during the warmer months, especially field-grown palms. Container-grown palms usually present little or no problems unless they are heavily rooted into the soil under the containers. On field-grown palms, leaves need to be left tied around the heart for 60 days.