What is this young but giant palm?

[Missi]

I hope @Hillizard doesn't mind me borrowing this photo of his for this post  He was at the Osher Rainforest exhibit in San Francisco when he took this photo. He was not able to get an i.d. at the exhibit. The photos were posted in @Jdiaz31089's palms of San Fran thread where I asked the palm's i.d. but there were no answers. Does anyone here know?

Is it a Mauritia species? Is it Sabal mauritiiformis? It's certainly not a Corypha, right? 

[Darold Petty]

I sourced several seedling sized palms for this exhibit, years ago when it first was developed.  I believe that the palm is Mauritia flexuosa, but not positive.  Some where on my messy desk I might still have the paperwork to confirm this ID,     The request was for species from the Amazon basin. This was not posssible to source in California since those species won't grow outdoors here, and thus are not propagated.  I think I obtained most of the stuff from Floribunda.

 This exhibit is called a "rainforest" but it is not nearly wet enough to truly qualify.  There are always dry leaves on the bed surfaces, which would never be in habitat.  If this exhibit was truly at rainforest water levels there would be slimy algae on all the hard surfaces, problematic for public venues. 

[Kris]

Hi,

It looks like Maritia Carana And here is a link :

http://www.palmpedia.net/wiki/Mauritia_carana

But what iam unable to understand is those palms need good sunlight.Could the palms seen in those stills above be artificial specimens ?

Love,

Kris.

[Darold Petty]

Kris, this exhibit has very powerful electric illumination.  There is an adjacent 'coral reef' with sufficient light levels to support live corals, so the light levels are very high.

[Kris]

Okay.

[Hillizard]

I'm happy to see that image got some extra 'mileage' on this forum. And at least we're all agreed it's likely a Mauritia palm; but which species is still to be determined. Thanks everyone for your input. 

[Missi]

Fascinating! I love it! Thanks for sharing, everyone!

I've been obsessed with this palm since I saw Hillizard's photos, so I added a 4" M. flexuosa to my pending Floribunda list! I know it is said that FL is too cold for them as they are Zone 11s, but I want to grow one for as long as I will be blessed to do so! 

[Missi]

3 hours ago, Kris said:

Hi,

It looks like Maritia Carana And here is a link :

http://www.palmpedia.net/wiki/Mauritia_carana

But what iam unable to understand is those palms need good sunlight.Could the palms seen in those stills above be artificial specimens ?

Love,

Kris.

That is a really fascinating palm too! I don't think I've ever heard of it!

[Hillizard]

32 minutes ago, Missi said:

Fascinating! I love it! Thanks for sharing, everyone!

I've been obsessed with this palm since I saw Hillizard's photos, so I added a 4" M. flexuosa to my pending Floribunda list! I know it is said that FL is too cold for them as they are Zone 11s, but I want to grow one for as long as I will be blessed to do so! 

Missi: That species has been grown in Florida. See: http://www.palmtalk.org/forum/index.php?/topic/26717-mauritia-flexuosa/#comment-440441  Will be exciting to see how it does in your garden! 

[Zeeth]

39 minutes ago, Missi said:

Fascinating! I love it! Thanks for sharing, everyone!

I've been obsessed with this palm since I saw Hillizard's photos, so I added a 4" M. flexuosa to my pending Floribunda list! I know it is said that FL is too cold for them as they are Zone 11s, but I want to grow one for as long as I will be blessed to do so! 

I don't know if your zone is warm enough due to your distance inland, but I've seen medium sized ones at Fairchild and Montgomery. They need swampy soil conditions though.

[Missi]

6 minutes ago, Hillizard said:

Missi: That species has been grown in Florida. See: http://www.palmtalk.org/forum/index.php?/topic/26717-mauritia-flexuosa/#comment-440441  Will be exciting to see how it does in your garden! 

I saw that post yesterday. That palm is growing in FL?! I don't know why, but I assumed when he said he visited a friend, that the friend was in Hawaii!  Or wait, he said he formerly lived in Costa Rica...maybe the pic was from then? Maybe I'm just in denial?!

[Missi]

3 minutes ago, Zeeth said:

I don't know if your zone is warm enough due to your distance inland, but I've seen medium sized ones at Fairchild and Montgomery. They need swampy soil conditions though.

I think I read somewhere that their water need is comparable to majesty's water needs? If that is the case, I'll have to figure something out...

[bgl]

Seeing these palms in habitat will explain a lot. This was during the IPS Interim Board meeting in Peru in October 2013. We are out on Lago Sandoval in the Tambopata Reserve, not far from Puerto Maldonado in the Amazonas.

[bgl]

And who the heck are all these people getting all wet - just because they want to see palms!

[Jeff Searle]

6 hours ago, Missi said:

Fascinating! I love it! Thanks for sharing, everyone!

I've been obsessed with this palm since I saw Hillizard's photos, so I added a 4" M. flexuosa to my pending Floribunda list! I know it is said that FL is too cold for them as they are Zone 11s, but I want to grow one for as long as I will be blessed to do so! 

We probably have similar conditions based where were at. I have a good size one here at the nursery that has been growing for well over 10 years now and has seen 31 and 32 degrees. I feel their a little tougher than some people think.

[Fusca]

I really like the Mauritia flexuosa also - check the photo I've used for my avitar.  These guys are growing in a city park near a friend's house in Goiania, Brasil.  I can attest to their need of water and fast growth.  I've grown a couple from seed - first leaf is palmate and really long.  Very attractive at this stage, and they develop a large root system pretty quickly.  I've seen so many of them growing in northern Brasil even along major highways.  Never saw one growing here in the states - good to know that there are a few around!  Missi, I hope you can get yours to do well!

Jon

[Missi]

10 hours ago, Jeff Searle said:

We probably have similar conditions based where were at. I have a good size one here at the nursery that has been growing for well over 10 years now and has seen 31 and 32 degrees. I feel their a little tougher than some people think.

Awesome! So great to know!! I assume yours is in ground?

[Missi]

15 hours ago, bgl said:

Seeing these palms in habitat will explain a lot. This was during the IPS Interim Board meeting in Peru in October 2013. We are out on Lago Sandoval in the Tambopata Reserve, not far from Puerto Maldonado in the Amazonas.

Oh. My. Word!!  Wet feet galore!! AMAZING photos! I've always said my dream vacation would be a South American ecotour!

@Jeff Searle, how much water does your get in our dry season?

15 hours ago, bgl said:

And who the heck are all these people getting all wet - just because they want to see palms!

Looks like my kinda people!  I imagine many macaws were seem as well? 

9 hours ago, Fusca said:

I really like the Mauritia flexuosa also - check the photo I've used for my avitar.  These guys are growing in a city park near a friend's house in Goiania, Brasil.  I can attest to their need of water and fast growth.  I've grown a couple from seed - first leaf is palmate and really long.  Very attractive at this stage, and they develop a large root system pretty quickly.  I've seen so many of them growing in northern Brasil even along major highways.  Never saw one growing here in the states - good to know that there are a few around!  Missi, I hope you can get yours to do well!

Jon

Thank you so much! Absolutely stunning photo! A lovely palm to lean against for some shade to read a book 

[Fusca]

Like Butia the fruits are not only attractive but tasty and often used to make jelly, pastries, wine, juice, etc.  Often the fruits end up in the water and I've seen the seeds germinating in the water!

[Darold Petty]

I found my old record of palms that I provided to this facility.  I Did Not deliver a Mauritia. 

I provided the following species on May 19th of 2009;

Itaya amicorum, 3 seedlings

Euterpe sp. 'Espiritosantensis, 2 5-gallon

Bactris grayumi, 1 1-gallon

Bactris setosa, 1 1-gallon

Geonoma deversa, 1 1-gallon

Mauritiella armata, 2 1-gallon

The palm featured in this thread may still be a Mauritia, but I didn't provide it.  The Academy obtained plants from many sources and the existing plants are generally not labeled. 

 

 

[Hillizard]

2 hours ago, Darold Petty said:

I found my old record of palms that I provided to this facility.  I Did Not deliver a Mauritia. 

I provided the following species on May 19th of 2009;

Itaya amicorum, 3 seedlings

Euterpe sp. 'Espiritosantensis, 2 5-gallon

Bactris grayumi, 1 1-gallon

Bactris setosa, 1 1-gallon

Geonoma deversa, 1 1-gallon

Mauritiella armata, 2 1-gallon

The palm featured in this thread may still be a Mauritia, but I didn't provide it.  The Academy obtained plants from many sources and the existing plants are generally not labeled. 

 

 

Darold: Thanks for listing those species!  I wish the Academy would label their plants/palms conspicuously as does the nearby Conservatory of Flowers.

[Missi]

Yes, thank you for the list! The mystery continues...