Phoenix Sylvestris vs. Sylvestris Robusta

[BeerPlant]

Does anyone grow both to show the differences for comparison. My wife and I saw couple robustas lining a nursery this weekend that were quite the specimens. She said, you sure they don't paint them ? They were so unbelievably orange I couldnt believe it. I just wanted to know the real differences if someone could comment.

Thanks,

Bill

[Kris]

Dear Bill

Here are some beautiful visual links to clear your doubts...

http://www.rarepalms...op/PhoSyl.shtml

http://www.rarepalms...op/PhoRob.shtml

http://davesgarden.c...howimage/24262/

http://davesgarden.c...s/pf/go/169720/

And by the way the P.S.Robusta's are very beautiful and heavier trunking than the regular form !

Love,

kris

[palmpuppy]

Here is our sylvestris (we only have the one and there isn't much trunk). Sorry about the color quality. It is very overcast today. I don't know if the orange coloring will eventually fade to more brown.

Three more photos from a grower

http://stokestropicals.com/silver-date-palm-39.htm

Jackie

[BeerPlant]

Thanks for the photos and links! I must say I prefer the look of Robusta....

Also looking the Stokes website I would guess they have it mislabeled as it looks like Robusta to me - correct?

[palmpuppy]

I think you should check Palmbob's comments (whom we all know as Geoff) on the Dave's Garden's site http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/58142/

I suspect "robusta" is not really a variation of sylvestris (other than possibly a hybridized sylvestris and, if that is the case, you have no idea what you will get). I suspect it is just another "nickname" for a sylvestris. As in "Robusta" as opposed to "Pygmy." I could be wrong, tho. In the photos in the link above, there is one in particular that has the newer leaf bases showing orange but fading to a grayish brown lower on the trunk which is what I suspect will happen with all sylvestrises as the leaf bases age. That photo is here: http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/showimage/203050/

We were interested in the blue leaves of the sylvestris and went to a source where we had confidence when told it was most likely not a hybridized sylvestris due to where the seeds came from. Below is a picture of our sylvestris taken two years ago. There isn't much of a trunk but you can see the blue in the leaves better in the sunlight. This is what was most important to us (though, when starting with a seedling as we did, it takes a while for the sylvestris to develop the bluish color). It is trimmed up in a "V" shape while it gains height so we don't run into its nasty thorns going in and out of the gate.

Jackie

[Phoenikakias]

Orange leaf sheaths and petioles can be also a feature of Phoenix theophrasti. This can be especially conspicuous in its natural stand in Vai, where specimens with orange color grow side by side with specimens without this feature. It is speculated to be some kind of variation, and, if the theory of the german botanist Wilhelm Loetschert that phoenix theophrasti belongs to the sylvestris group is correct, then this variation also by sylvestis is natural and no result of some hybridization. It follows a picture of P. theophrasti with orage color from an urban landscape.