Lodoicea seeds?

[Mr_Marojejya]

Hi all,

Does anyone know where to acquire growable seeds of L. maldivica? It seems to be entirely impossible. 

Rarepalmseeds has them for 1000 euros each, and has been out of stock for over a decade. There seems to be no other source, yet they are plentiful in the Seychelles and have the embryo scraped out, and the cornels sold at exorbitant prices. yet to my knowledge there does not seem to be any seed exporting business?

So if anyone knows Id love to hear how you got yours, or if you know how some can be acquired 

Many thanks

[palmfriend]

Hi,

you are not the first asking about this - but several threads over here have already dealt with this matter... 

If you find a reliable and - most important - LEGAL source, please let us know.  

Lars

 

[Mr_Marojejya]

7 hours ago, palmfriend said:

Hi,

you are not the first asking about this - but several threads over here have already dealt with this matter... 

If you find a reliable and - most important - LEGAL source, please let us know.  

Lars

 

oh ok thanks, I shall have another search on the forums

[Rick Kelley]

I stopped by Foster Botanical Garden in downtown Honolulu a few days ago. They have a mature female with about ten feet of trunk just loaded with fruit.  They got pollen from a tree in Nong Nooch Garden in Thailand.  Foster has been planting out seedlings (about six) in their garden so that down the road they will have both male and female trees. Right now the seedlings are only about four feet high, but what a wonderful investment in the future of this amazing and rare species. 

photos at

I would be shocked to learn that they sell seeds to private individuals. More likely they are distributing them to other botanical gardens around the world.

[Mr_Marojejya]

On 6/3/2022 at 4:42 AM, Rick Kelley said:

I stopped by Foster Botanical Garden in downtown Honolulu a few days ago. They have a mature female with about ten feet of trunk just loaded with fruit.  They got pollen from a tree in Nong Nooch Garden in Thailand.  Foster has been planting out seedlings (about six) in their garden so that down the road they will have both male and female trees. Right now the seedlings are only about four feet high, but what a wonderful investment in the future of this amazing and rare species. 

photos at

I would be shocked to learn that they sell seeds to private individuals. More likely they are distributing them to other botanical gardens around the world.

oh yes one day. this species should become more available, but at the rate it grows, will probably be a century or two lol.

but fingers crossed!!!!

[GottmitAlex]

I believe it takes these palms 60+ years to fruit....

 

 

[John hovancsek]

I think they produce seed on Oahu at a botanical garden but that is your best bet . It is impossible to get this palm

 

[Max974]

Get closer to Nong Nooch Tropical Garden.

[Nate in floridawaii]

Per the Seychelles Parks and Gardens Authority:

https://www.spga.gov.sc/sites/default/files/2024-08/coco-de-mer-price-list.pdf

If you scroll the PDF, there’s a category E:  “Viable Coco de Mer for planting” (I might add that as of August 2024 when the list was updated, they’re rather cheap relatively speaking too).  Per Reddit, the SPGA is an authorized seller, and I’m assuming most tourists show up looking to buy the non-viable, already-emptied, re-assembled hulls.  I’ve looked elsewhere on this forum and noticed mention of Lodoicea listed under CITES, and that the exportation out of the Seychelles of the viable endosperm is highly regulated.  

So…total shot in the dark here, but I’m curious if anybody here has had any luck while visiting Seychelles in terms of purchasing from SPGA a “category E” nut and — assuming proper import paperwork while clearing US customs — had success bringing one back to try and germinate?

Miami-based here and thinking of visiting Seychelles this fall, I love walking through the hothouse and admiring the specimen at the Fairchild, but I’d really love one in my yard.  

 

[Cindy Adair]

 $127 USD I’d be up for that.

It was not out of reach to obtain import permits as I did, but the essential export stamp was impossible on my Seychelles visit around 2016. 

My guess is that the list is for Seychelles residents only but would be delighted to learn otherwise. 

[Nate in floridawaii]

Thanks for the insight, Cindy.  And you’re right, at 127 USD plus given how pricey the well-shaped non-viable shells can cost for tourists, it sounds too good to be true.  There’s got to be a catch.

I’ve reached out to the SPGA to inquire about whether sale to visiting foreigners is actually acceptable/allowed from their facility, and if so, whether they are able to generate the export stamp/clearance.  Finger’s crossed, hopefully more to come.  

[Cindy Adair]

I’m sure everyone reading this awaits the reply!

[Cindy Adair]

I did hear back from an IPS member today who also  wrote the SPGA.
 

He received the reply that no viable Coco de Mer seed is being exported. 

Sigh. 

[Hu Palmeras]

I'm willing to pay $200 USD for Ladoicea Maldivica seeds. I hope there's a worldwide supplier of these monsters soon. I want to bring these tremendous monsters to life.