The Genus - International Palm Society · PALMS Migliaccio & Reyes:Coccothrinax Vol. 49(2) 2005 57...

PALMS Migliaccio & Reyes: Coccothrinax Vol. 49(2) 2005

57

The GenusCoccothrinaxin Cultivation

CHRIS MIGLIACCIO

Dept. of Natural Sciences,Health & Wellness, Miami-Dade College, 300 NE 2nd Avenue, Miami, Florida, [email protected]

AND

ARMANDO REYES

3641 SW 21st Street, Miami, Florida, [email protected]

For many years, only a handful of Coccothrinax species have ever been cultivated

outside of the Caribbean basin. In the last five years, over two dozen additional

species have become available to collectors. Although little is known about the

needs of these species in cultivation, some of these palms are very beautiful and

deserve wider use.

PALMS 49(2): 57–71

1. A portionof theextensivecollection ofCoccothrinaxat FairchildTropical BotanicGarden.

Palms of the genus Coccothrinax are speciesfrom coastal scrub and open forest from theCaribbean islands and bordering lands (Uhl &Dransfield 1987). While most forest species arefound in the mid-canopy, a few are emergentpalms. All are solitary, with the exception ofC. pseudorigida and C. fagildei, which cluster.

Currently, there are 50 accepted species in thegenus. Considerable taxonomic confusionexists because many pockets of endemismoccur in eastern Cuba, perhaps due to the richassemblages of soil types and microclimates,

and most species seem to possess limiteddistribution ranges, making finding the palms,much less collecting ripe seeds, difficult.

When Henderson, Galeano and Bernalpublished the Field Guide to the Palms of theAmericas in 1995, they reduced the number ofspecies to 14 and indicated that the genus wasin dire need of revision. However, Moya andLeiva’s checklist (2000) enumerated 38 speciesfor Cuba alone. When the second largestcenter of distribution, Hispaniola, isconsidered, the number of accepted species


58

2. Coccothrinaxcrinita, aspecies knownfor its longfibers coveringthe trunk.

may be even greater. It is easy to see that thisgenus does indeed need a great deal of workto sort out the species. Complicating mattersfurther is the fact that anecdotal evidencestrongly suggests that a significant amount ofhybridization has occurred among the speciescultivated in South Florida, a situation makingtaxonomic work based upon these individualschallenging, to say the least. A completetaxonomic review of Coccothrinax would clarifythe taxonomy of existing species and would beparticularly welcome in the light of the currentcollecting activity in Cuba and the DominicanRepublic that may very well result in thediscovery of new species.

This article focuses on the cultivation of someof the attractive, but little known, taxa thathave recently come into South Florida. Becauseof the confusion regarding names, thetaxonomy of the genus cannot be ignoredcompletely. This paper thus relies more closelyon the work of Cuban botanists most familiarwith the species in the wild than on otherpublished accounts.

For many years, only a handful of Coccothrinaxspecies have ever been cultivated. In this paper,we define “cultivation” to mean species foundin the landscape trade or in private collections(botanic gardens and individual collectors).


59

3. Coccothrinaxmiraguama isappreciated for itsattractive, persistentleaf base fibers.

Interestingly, a few species are widely grown,while the many more species are practicallyunknown outside their countries of origin.Some of these species deserve wider usebecause of their beauty.

Presently, only about eight taxa are known tobe grown for the commercial landscapemarket; a handful are being tried in the CanaryIslands, but another 30 have gradually begunto be grown in South Florida. Proximity towild seed sources, however irregular andlimited in quantity, and similar climate andsoil type, make South Florida well suited forcultivating and studying the genus. Their slowgrowth rate makes them challenging

candidates for long term study, and for thesame reason, few of the newly available speciesare likely to be embraced by the landscapetrade. Several species that have moderately fastgrowth rates hold some promise. Warm anddry regions of Australia and Hawaii could alsobe well suited for growing this genus, but lowsoil pH in both locations limits Coccothrinaxcultivation. Few species grow well in eitherlocation. Likewise, southern California doesnot seem to be a good habitat for most speciesbecause of its long and cool winters.

For many years, Coccothrinax argentata, C.barbadensis, C. crinita (Fig. 2), C. miraguama(Fig. 3) and C. spissa (Fig. 3) were the only


60

4. The trunk ofCoccothrinaxspissa isswollen.

species widely found in cultivation, althougha handful of names (C. argentea, C. martii, C.alta) were indiscriminately applied to plantsavailable at local palm sales. Occasionallyplants identified as C. boschiana, C. clarensis,C. cupularis, C. gracilis, C. fragrans, C. inaguensis,C. jamaicensis, C. readii and C. yuruguana havebeen sold at Fairchild Tropical Botanic Gardenor South Florida Palm Society sales. However,very few other species have appeared incultivation until the past three years whencollectors from around the Caribbean basinbegan palm prospecting in Cuba and theDominican Republic. As a result, seeds andseedlings of numerous taxa have begun to

appear at local palm sales and offered on theInternet by commercial seed and plantvendors. However, because the taxonomy isin disarray and there are no mature specimensof these new “immigrants” in South Florida,it is important to acknowledge thatidentification of these newly offered species istentative at best. In a few cases, quantities of“fresh seeds” have been offered from locationswhere the palms simply do not exist and/ormany months after the plants finished theirannual fruiting.

Collections of seeds from palms in the typelocalities and extensive photo collections have


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5. A suspected hybrid betweenCoccothrinax and Zombia.


62

Tab

le 1

. Sp

ecie

s o

f C

occo

thri

na

xin

cu

ltiv

atio

n.

Coc

coth

rin

ax

sp

ecie

sN

ativ

e to

Ch

arac

teri

stic

s

arge

ntat

aPi

ne

rock

lan

ds

of S

outh

Flo

rid

a in

clu

din

g Fl

orid

aLa

x le

aves

dar

k gr

een

abo

ve a

nd

sil

ver

belo

w;

hig

h

Key

s; c

oast

al h

amm

ocks

of

sou

ther

n F

lori

da

Key

s;

dro

ugh

t an

d s

alt

tole

ran

ce;

slow

gro

win

g.B

aham

as;

Yuca

tan

.

barb

aden

sis

Coa

stal

scr

ub

from

Les

ser

An

till

es s

outh

to

Larg

e gr

een

lea

ves,

may

be

slig

htl

y si

lver

bel

ow;

Trin

idad

an

d M

arga

rita

Isl

and

, V

enez

uel

a.fa

stes

t gr

owin

g of

gen

us

(see

d t

o 6

m [

20 f

t.]

in t

en

year

s).

borh

idia

naSc

rub

fore

st o

n k

arst

nea

r co

ast,

Mat

anza

s, C

uba

.Ex

cep

tion

ally

sti

ff l

eave

s w

ith

sh

ort

pet

iole

s; l

eave

s re

tain

ed f

or y

ears

– s

up

erfi

cial

ly r

esem

blin

g a

min

iatu

re C

oper

nici

a m

acro

glos

sa;

erec

t in

flor

esce

nce

s;So

uth

Flo

rid

a sp

ecim

ens

are

fin

ally

pro

du

cin

g la

rge

pu

rple

fru

it a

fter

abo

ut

18 y

ears

of

cult

ivat

ion

fro

m

seed

; sa

lt a

nd

dro

ugh

t to

lera

nt.

crin

ita

Low

ser

pen

tin

e h

ill

soil

s in

cen

tral

an

d w

este

rn

Larg

e gr

een

lea

ves;

lon

g ar

chin

g in

flor

esce

nce

s ab

ove

Cu

ba;

crit

ical

ly e

nd

ange

red

.th

e cr

own

wit

h l

arge

bu

rgu

nd

y fr

uit

; p

ersi

sten

t le

af

shea

ths

form

th

ick

laye

r of

fib

ers

on t

run

k; c

riti

call

yen

dan

gere

d i

n t

he

wil

d (

<100

pla

nts

in

hab

itat

) bu

t ar

guab

ly t

he

mos

t ea

sily

rec

ogn

ized

an

d w

idel

y gr

own

sp

ecie

s of

th

e ge

nu

s in

th

e w

orld

; ea

sy t

o gr

ow i

n a

lkal

ine

soil

s d

esp

ite

bein

g n

ativ

e to

se

rpen

tin

e h

abit

at;

req

uir

es m

ore

wat

er t

han

oth

ers

in g

enu

s.

mir

agua

ma

Pin

e fo

rest

s an

d s

and

y sc

rub

in w

este

rn C

uba

.Pr

obab

ly s

ever

al d

iffe

ren

t su

bsp

ecie

s; a

ll s

har

e ri

gid

gr

een

pin

wh

eel

leav

es a

nd

coa

rse

fibe

rs;

tru

nks

fa

vora

ble

as h

osts

for

sm

all

epip

hyt

ic o

rch

ids

and

br

omel

iad

s.

proc

tori

Cay

man

Isl

and

s.Fa

st g

row

ing,

sal

t to

lera

nt,

tal

l p

alm

wit

h c

lose

af

fin

itie

s to

C.

arge

ntat

aan

d p

erh

aps

C.

barb

aden

sis.

scop

aria

Wid

esp

read

in

pin

e fo

rest

s in

th

e D

omin

ican

Si

mil

ar t

o C

. m

irag

uam

aw

ith

sti

ff,

dee

ply

div

ided

R

epu

blic

(an

d H

aiti

?)le

aves

an

d w

ide,

coa

rse

leaf

sh

eath

fib

ers;

tru

nk

mor

e sl

end

er.

spis

saSc

rubl

and

s an

d o

pen

pas

ture

in

sou

ther

n

Stou

test

tru

nk

in g

enu

s (u

p t

o 70

cm

[27

.5 i

n.]

D

omin

ican

Rep

ubl

ic a

nd

Hai

ti.

in d

iam

eter

in

cu

ltiv

ated

sp

ecim

ens)

; u

sual

ly s

wol

len

mid

stem

.

been made to help identify the plants using theolder Coccothrinax literature. Buyers shouldrealize that all identifications should beconsidered tentative until more extensive fieldwork is done and the genus is formally revised.In the meantime, growers should keep accuraterecords of seed sources and their owncultivation experiences to contribute to agrowing body of information on this genus ofattractive palms.

In the last few years, small quantities of seedsand nursery-grown seedlings labeled as C.alexandri, C. argentea, C. camagueyana, C.fragrans, C. ekmanii, C. garciana, C. gundlachii,C. hiorami, C. macroglossa, C. moaensis, C.montana, C. munizii, C. borhidana, C. nipensis,C. pauciramosa, C. pseudorigida, C. salvatorisand C. saxicola, have become available togrowers. Because these species are “new to thetrade” little is known about their cultural

requirements. This paper, therefore, presentswhat is known at this time and identifies whatmay be some horticulturally valuable speciesworthy of greater use in the subtropical andtropical landscapes.

Species in Cultivation

Because Florida is close to the center ofdistribution of the genus and has the wet/dryseason and alkaline soil preferred by mostmembers of the genus, more Coccothrinax (ca.40 taxa) are cultivated here than anywhereelse. The majority of species are recent arrivals,and few fruiting specimens exist. Anecdotalevidence suggests that what have beenrecognized as Coccothrinax species (particularlythose in the C. argentata – C. readii – C.inaguensis – C. litoralis and C. barbadensis – C.alta – C. readii – C. proctorii – C. jamaicensisgroups outside of Cuba) can form fertilehybrids. This evidence suggests that each


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6. Community potof seedlings ofCoccothinraxargentata makingvigorous growth.

group may be one species that displays a widerange of characteristics across its range ratherthan a guild of multiple species. Additionally,an intergeneric and sterile Coccothrinax ×Zombia hybrid has flourished at FairchildTropical Botanic Garden in Miami for decades(Fig 5). Obviously the application of DNAanalysis to all Coccothrinax could help clarifythe picture.

Table 1 presents the species that have beengrown for the longest time in South Florida,as well as in Hawaii, Australia, the CanaryIslands and elsewhere. Palms known as C. altaand C. argentea are also in cultivation, but allthe mature plants the authors have seen havehorticultural origins and resemble either C.argentata or C. barbadensis, or share a mixture

of characteristics that make identificationchallenging.

Cultivating Coccothrinax

Coccothrinax are best grown from freshlycollected ripe seeds. After removing the pulp,soak the seeds 1–3 days and discard any“floaters.” Dried seeds may be soaked for overa week to rehydrate them. Sow the seedsshallowly in a 10–15 cm deep community potof well drained medium kept in a warm, sunnyspace. Fresh seeds germinate best, but seedscan take up to a year to germinate. Be patientand do not throw the seeds out until they rot.If the soil mix breaks down, remove theungerminated seeds, replace the mix andresow.


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7. The rootmass ofCoccothrinaxhiorami islarge andbenefits froma large,roomy pot.

Community pots may be divided whenseedlings are at the two-leaf stage. Seedlingsshould be placed in pots deep enough toaccommodate the long roots (Fig. 6)Coccothrinax germinates remotely, so be sure toplant the seedling so the roots are below thesoil and the bud of the seedling is aboveground. Once again, a well-drained medium isbest and may be amended with crushedlimestone rock or dolomite for drainage andto maintain an alkaline root zone.

Coccothrinax benefits from over-potting – thatis, planting in larger pots than most palms,because of their proportionately greater rootmass (Fig. 7). Growth rates can be increased bymoving seedlings and juvenile plants into potsone size greater than the usual sequence. Keeppotted Coccothrinax off the ground on benchesto ensure good air circulation around theplants. Most species (except C. crinita, C.montana and C. yunquensis) will tolerate fullsun even as seedlings. Growers in subtropical


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8. Coccothrinaxboschiana isslow-growingbut attractive,even as ayoung plant.

regions will also need to provide coldprotection for these small potted palms,especially from dry winds and cold rain thatencourage fatal fungal infections. Regularapplications of a balanced time release palmfertilizer and micronutrient sprays will alsopromote growth and strengthen plants againstconditions of low humidity and cool wintertemperature. Patience is also a requirement forgrowing palms in this genus as most are slow-growing, particularly for the first 3–5 years.

Because most species are found in sunny,seasonally dry climates and in well drainedalkaline soils, similar landscape conditions willpromote the best growth when the palms areready to be planted. Dig a large hole toaccommodate future root growth and thenwater and mulch the newly planted palms tomimic their habitat. Planting at the beginningof the rainy season will help young plants getestablished. Keep mulch away from the trunkto avoid fungal infection and fertilize lightly


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9. Coccothrinax borhidiana is a handsome palm for gardens.

for the first six months with a palm fertilizerwith N-P-K ratio of 2-1-3 and micronutrients.Liquid fertilizers may be used for plants in theground or in pots but are unlikely to havemuch effect on slow-growing palms such asthese. Many of the very attractive Cuban species arefound in serpentine soils rich in nickel and/orother heavy metals such as iron, chromium,cobalt and manganese. These soils also featurehigh magnesium/calcium ratios with

correspondingly low levels of calcium,potassium and phosphorus. In fact, calciumlevels in serpentine soils are virtually zero.Serpentine soils can be either acidic or alkalinewith older serpentine areas tending to be moreacidic and newer ones slightly more alkaline.For the serpentine species (C. sp. “azul”, C.camagueyana, C. clarensis, C. garciana, C.moaensis, C. pseudorigida and C. yuruguana)long-term container culture may be the onlyviable option unless local soils are serpentine


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10. Coccothrinax camagueyana has silvery leaves with bluish cast.

as well. Alternatively, using an iron andmagnesium amendment once a month seemsbeneficial.

Species worthy of wider cultivation

The following species are worthy of widercultivation because of the characteristics listedand their prospective adaptability tosubtropical or tropical conditions on welldrained alkaline soils.

C. alexandri – 13–20 m, robust, Cuban, coastalpalm with large crown of stiff leaves with silverundersides.

C. boschiana (Fig. 8) – slender, DominicanRepublic, coastal species with leaves goldengreen above and silver below; heavy, coarsefiber; slow-growing.

C. brevicrinis – Cuban palm with short trunk,short, coarse fibers and dense crownintermediate in “hairiness” between C.borhidiana (Fig. 9) and C. crinita (Fig. 2); froma different part of Cuba with different soil (C.crinita comes from serpentine area, C.brevicrinis from alkaline calcareous soils.

C. camagueyana (Fig. 10) – drought tolerant,serpentine species good for pot culture,moderate growth rate, stiff leaves with silver-

blue cast on upper surface; similar to plantsknown as C. “azul” (Fig. 11).

C. fragrans – Dominican Republic and Cubanspecies with stout trunk; close affinity to C.spissa.

C. garciana – serpentine species from Cuba withspiny red leaf fibers to 2 cm wide, rigid roundleaves on short petioles; exceptionally slowgrowth rate and soil requirements may limitthis to long-term pot culture.

C. gundlachii – robust, Cuban species withlarge, stiff leaves, erect inflorescence and heavy,coarse fiber.

C. litoralis – coastal Cuban species found insandy, wet, littoral scrub; high salt toleranceand moderate growth rate.

C. macroglossa (Fig. 12) – robust, Cuban palmwith large black fruit, stiff leaves that are silverunderneath, coarse fibers.

C. montana – an understory palm from themoist mountains of the central DominicanRepublic; dark green leaves deeply divided;fast-growing; white fruit.


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11. The species known to growers as Coccothrinax “azul” is one of the bluest species.

C. munizii (Fig. 13) – a thin-stemmed, Cubanspecies with small, wedge-shaped leaves; tinyfruit; a good planting companion with cactus.

C. pauciramosa – medium-sized, coastal, Cubanspecies with erect inflorescence and heavy,coarse fiber; easy to cultivate.

C. salvatoris – Cuban brackish forest specieswith a compact crown, wide leaf segments,heavy fiber and starburst-like leaves.

Many questions remain

A handful of other species (C. clarensis, C.cupularis (Fig. 14), C. ekmanii, C.guantanamensis, C. hiorami, C. inaguensis, C.jamaicensis, C. pseudorigida, C. readii, C. saxicola,C. yunquensis, and C. yuraguana) are so poorlyrepresented in cultivation that identificationof some of the plants may be questionable,particularly if the plants were grown fromseeds collected in botanic gardens.Furthermore, the following taxa remain poorlyknown altogether or unknown in cultivationoutside their country of origin (Cuba, unless

otherwise noted): C. acunana, C. baracoensis, C.bermudezii, C. concolor (Haiti, extinct?), C.elegans, C. fagildei (clustering with up to 100heads!), C. leonis, C. microphylla, C. moaensis,C. muricata, C. nipensis, C. orientalis, C. pumila,C. rigida, C. savannarum, C. trinitensis, and C.victorini) that their horticultural potentialcannot be evaluated at this time.

A further comment

As we worked on this article, we realized thatcultivating Coccothrinax serves as a metaphorof life itself and offers many meaningfullessons – patience is an important virtue,actions often take a long time to bear fruit andno matter how much we would like to seethings happen, Nature moves according to itsown timetable. Coccothrinax seedlings need theright nutrients, just the right amount of waterand sunlight and a healthy environment. Theycan tolerate a fair amount of pests, includingoverprotective “parents.” Whenever ourconversation turns to which species justproduced its first divided leaf after years ofgrowth, we are reminded of these lessons.


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12. Coccothrinax macroglossa has stiff leaves that are silvery underneath.

Summary

As more species of Coccothrinax are cultivated,we hope that commercial growers andcollectors will share their experiences in palmforums and in the literature so that theseattractive palms will find greater use inlandscapes. We hope to see more in situ andex situ conservation efforts, particularly for theCuban species with limited distributions, inorder to buffer the effects of human activity,particularly coastal tourism, in Cuba and theDominican Republic. Additionally, consistentpractice of sustainable collection techniquesand appropriate horticultural methods can alsoensure the survival of Coccothrinax in the wildand in cultivation. These practices include

collecting a few seeds from many individualsrather than all the seeds of a few specimens,harvesting only ripe seeds and processing thempromptly, matching the cultural conditions tothe plant’s own habitat as closely as possible,as well as carefully monitoring these palmsfrom sowing to planting in the landscape. Itis particularly important to obtain as muchknowledge as possible of the ecology of thesepalms in the wild, as this information will helpus determine each species’ suitability forcultivation and techniques of conservation.

Acknowledgments

The authors thank Dr. Scott Zona, PalmBiologist at Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden


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13. Coccothrinax munizii is aslender palm with stiffleaves from the driest partof southeastern Cuba.

and Paul Craft, President of IPS for theirongoing encouragement of this project,assistance with translations of originaldescriptions and their editorial suggestions.Many collectors and horticulturalists kindlyshared their experiences; notable among themwere Mike Harris, Loxahatchee, Florida, USA;Dale Holton, Lake Worth, Florida, USA; MarcelMoreno, Miami, Florida, USA; Ken Neugentand Mike Davenport, Fairchild TropicalBotanic Garden, Miami, Florida, USA; Carlo

Morici, Tenerife, Canary Islands; and the lateHoward Waddell, Miami, Florida USA. Allphotos were taken by Chris Migliaccio unlessotherwise noted.

LITERATURE CITED

MOYA L., C.E. AND A. T. LEIVA S. 2000. Checklistof the palms of Cuba, with notes on theirecology, distribution and conservation.Palms 44: 69–84.


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14. Coccothrinaxcupularis is stilluncommon outsidebotanical gardens. Thisspecimen grows atFairchild TropicalBotanic Garden, Miami,Florida.

The Genus - International Palm Society · PALMS Migliaccio & Reyes:Coccothrinax Vol. 49(2) 2005 57...

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Transcript of The Genus - International Palm Society · PALMS Migliaccio & Reyes:Coccothrinax Vol. 49(2) 2005 57...