Brahea aculeata, can it get any more complicated?

[Mauna Kea Cloudforest]

I am trying to crack the brahea aculeata secrets, so far, I can't seem to get any consistent growth data on these. PFSC has them listed to 25' in height with a rather narrow 8" trunk, which should make them a real nice attractive palm. As with all the brahea, there seems to be considerable variation amongst different forms. There is a green form and a blue form, there is a form called elegans which is supposed to get no bigger than 10', and there is the nuri, a cross between aculeata and armata.

Many of the aculeata making the rounds in Southern California are green. I am looking for a blue one like this.

I've seen the ones at the Huntington, they're green-gray colored and the ones in the desert garden are already a solid 10-15 feet in height if not more. Here's a photo of a smaller one at the Huntington:

Here's one of the larger aculeata in the desert garden:

Just so you can see the surroundings where they grow, not much water here. Brahea aculeata is supposed to be the most drought tolerant species of the genus. Note: in the photos, the brahea in the background are not aculeata but are the olive colored armata that the Huntington has all over, a very dull gray-green colored armata, not sure why they don't have any of the real silver ones on the grounds, they must have at least 50 of these olive colored ones.

Here's a nice form growing in France.

[Mauna Kea Cloudforest]

Here's a close up of an aculeata leaf on a very symmetric aculeata, just about perfect leaf form, almost 360 degrees on this one.

Here is the brahea elegans from the Dick Douglas garden. I have an offspring from this one, doesn't quite look like this yet.

This is the blue aculeata from the David Sylvia and Eric Christensen Garden in San Jose:

And here's the nuri, thought to be a cross between aculeata and armata:

RPS suggests elegans is not aculeata but a cross with something else. The literature however has it as a form of aculeata:

So there you have it, another very complicated species of brahea that leaves many, many more questions to be answered. This genus has been neglected for far too long. It's time for someone to do some genetic analysis.

[Mauna Kea Cloudforest]

This is Glenn's brahea aculeata with some nice light green, almost yellow color, I have one of these as well.

[Phoenikakias]

Returning to your initial question ,I think answer is yes it can be a lot more complicated! Remeber recent topic opened by Matt Bradford about extra lime in soil which makes Brahea sp become more silver? Are we sure that different coloration is a result of genetics and not of special growing conditions? Are we further sure that difference in leaf shape means variation within the sp and not merely hybridization? Especially this specimen from France in the above pictures does not remind at all of Brahea aculeata! Also the color of entirely ripe fruits on a previous year's infructescence of the specimen in the third picture from top (light brown/yellowish) is in total contrast to the full black color of the fruits on my specimen. It has occured to me also with Brahea armata specimens in southern France (some specimens were bearing fully ripe fruits with light brown/yellowish color), while other armata specimens bear totally ripe fruits with dark brown color.

[Mauna Kea Cloudforest]

Returning to your initial question ,I think answer is yes it can be a lot more complicated! Remeber recent topic opened by Matt Bradford about extra lime in soil which makes Brahea sp become more silver? Are we sure that different coloration is a result of genetics and not of special growing conditions? Are we further sure that difference in leaf shape means variation within the sp and not merely hybridization? Especially this specimen from France in the above pictures does not remind at all of Brahea aculeata! Also the color of entirely ripe fruits on a previous year's infructescence of the specimen in the third picture from top (light brown/yellowish) is in total contrast to the full black color of the fruits on my specimen. It has occured to me also with Brahea armata specimens in southern France (some specimens were bearing fully ripe fruits with light brown/yellowish color), while other armata specimens bear totally ripe fruits with dark brown color.

I took that picture at the arboretum, those were labeled aculeata and planted in the desert garden to illustrate their drought tolerance. Those seeds go from green to brown to black. I am positive that's an aculeata, totally matches the description.

[Phoenikakias]

I would swear that those yellow/brown fruits are fully ripe for following reasons: New fruits are well developed and old fruit stalk has declined meaning that cycle of ripening is complete. if flesh of those fruits is soft, so that you can remove it easily with fingers, then they are surely ripe. I am not arguing that this specimen is not pure, I want only to show how complicated is the issue with Brahea.

[EastCanadaTropicals]

On 2/24/2014 at 12:12 PM, Brahea Axel said:

I am trying to crack the brahea aculeata secrets, so far, I can't seem to get any consistent growth data on these. PFSC has them listed to 25' in height with a rather narrow 8" trunk, which should make them a real nice attractive palm. As with all the brahea, there seems to be considerable variation amongst different forms. There is a green form and a blue form, there is a form called elegans which is supposed to get no bigger than 10', and there is the nuri, a cross between aculeata and armata.

 

Many of the aculeata making the rounds in Southern California are green. I am looking for a blue one like this.

 

 

I've seen the ones at the Huntington, they're green-gray colored and the ones in the desert garden are already a solid 10-15 feet in height if not more. Here's a photo of a smaller one at the Huntington:

 

 

Here's one of the larger aculeata in the desert garden:

 

 

Just so you can see the surroundings where they grow, not much water here. Brahea aculeata is supposed to be the most drought tolerant species of the genus. Note: in the photos, the brahea in the background are not aculeata but are the olive colored armata that the Huntington has all over, a very dull gray-green colored armata, not sure why they don't have any of the real silver ones on the grounds, they must have at least 50 of these olive colored ones.

 

 

Here's a nice form growing in France.

 

I think it's from a colder area than Brahea Armanta, is it more cold hardy?

[Silas_Sancona]

20 minutes ago, EastCanadaTropicals said:

I think it's from a colder area than Brahea Armanta, is it more cold hardy?

Unlikely hardier than B. armata..  Palmpedia lists min temp exposure at 23F or so.  Have heard spear can be severely damaged/ pull if exposed to/below 21F. Area where it is native ( upper belt within the Tropical Deciduous Forest, possibly scattered distribution in the lower/warmer parts of the Madrean Pine Oak Woodland region of Southern Sonora/ Nor. Sinaloa ) is listed as 9A-11b.. Majority of winters down there are only a few degrees milder than our winters here. Forget it in zone 5.
 

[EastCanadaTropicals]

20 minutes ago, Silas_Sancona said:

Unlikely hardier than B. armata..  Palmpedia lists min temp exposure at 23F or so.  Have heard spear can be severely damaged/ pull if exposed to/below 21F. Area where it is native ( upper belt within the Tropical Deciduous Forest, possibly scattered distribution in the lower/warmer parts of the Madrean Pine Oak Woodland region of Southern Sonora/ Nor. Sinaloa ) is listed as 9A-11b.. Majority of winters down there are only a few degrees milder than our winters here. Forget it in zone 5.
 

If people can grow butia here with protection, then a Brahea would possibly work in a good microclimate, also, keep in mind it's a milder zone 5, Montreal is 5b/6a.

Edited January 11, 2021 by EastCanadaTropicals

[Matt N- Dallas]

In my experience, in a warm TX z8b with b. aculeata- it is definitely less cold hardy than b. armata.  Butia & Braheas can & do get occasional cold damage in a southern z8.   

[Jubaea_James760]

I'm growing one in my 8b zone here in California. It's going through its first winter & so far no damage. Lowest temperature so far this winter was 24f. I've had several 25-26f lows also,  with majority of nights near/ & or going below freezing from November onwards. 

Just thought I'd share the minimal data I had on Brahea Aculeata. 

[edbrown_III]

I grow em in Jax FL --- this is one from an IPS assession many moons ago (IPS used to have a seed bank ) 

[EastCanadaTropicals]

On 1/10/2021 at 9:26 PM, Silas_Sancona said:

Unlikely hardier than B. armata..  Palmpedia lists min temp exposure at 23F or so.  Have heard spear can be severely damaged/ pull if exposed to/below 21F. Area where it is native ( upper belt within the Tropical Deciduous Forest, possibly scattered distribution in the lower/warmer parts of the Madrean Pine Oak Woodland region of Southern Sonora/ Nor. Sinaloa ) is listed as 9A-11b.. Majority of winters down there are only a few degrees milder than our winters here. Forget it in zone 5.
 

I'm obviously boxing it and wrapping it with artificial heat.

[Silas_Sancona]

2 minutes ago, EastCanadaTropicals said:

I'm obviously boxing it and wrapping it with artificial heat.

Better to move somewhere it can grow  -un boxed/wrapped, blanketed, until too tall to protect.-

[EastCanadaTropicals]

1 hour ago, Silas_Sancona said:

Better to move somewhere it can grow  -un boxed/wrapped, blanketed, until too tall to protect.-

I like a challenge. I will try silver chameareops and sabal brazoria, as well as butia x jubaea. 

[EastCanadaTropicals]

1 hour ago, Silas_Sancona said:

Better to move somewhere it can grow  -un boxed/wrapped, blanketed, until too tall to protect.-

I will try Armanta instead.