Date palms
Botanical name: Phoenix
Date palms
Botanical name: Phoenix
Description
Date palms make up a genus that is small but very diverse. These palms can be found in many habitats, from sea coasts to deserts. Some species are cultivated for their edible fruit and sugary sap, and others are a great source of starch. Species that are cultivated as ornamental plants also provide a good food source for livestock.
Species of Date palms
Senegal date palm
Native to tropical Africa and the Arabian peninsula, the senegal date palm (Phoenix reclinata) is among the palm trees naturalized in Florida and some Western Atlantic islands. It can produce multiple trunks which can grow up to 35 feet. Senegal date palm produces long, pale yellow florets and edible orangish-red dates.
Cretan date palm
Cretan date palm is a striking tree endemic to the island of Crete. Its slow-growing nature makes it a popular choice for ornamental gardens. The tree's unique fan-shaped leaves and golden-brown trunk make it easily distinguishable from other palm species. Theophrasti is also a threatened species, with only a few thousand trees remaining in the wild.
Wild date palm
Phoenix sylvestris ranges from 4 to 15 m in height and 40 cm in diameter; not as large as the Canary Island Date Palm, but nearly so, and resembling it. The leaves are 3 m long, gently recurved, on 1 m petioles with acanthophylls near the base. The leaf crown grows to 10 m wide and 7.5 to 10 m tall containing up to 100 leaves. The inflorescence grows to 1 metre with white, unisexual flowers forming to a large, pendent infructescence. The single-seeded fruit ripens to a purple-red colour.
Canary island date palm
This slow-growing tree takes decades to reach its maximum height of 12 to 15 m. It produces large, orange fruit that, while edible, look better than they taste. Canary island date palms have been imported to the warmer regions of the US, but require careful fertilization to grow outside their native Canary Islands.
Date palm
Date palm (*Phoenix dactylifera*) is an evergreen tree with a strong, upright trunk and gracefully arching, feather-like fronds. It is drought tolerant and suitable for escaping. It is fire retardant, has pale yellow blooms, and produces an abundance of edible, orange fruit. This tree can live up to 75 years and grow to 24 m tall.
Mountain date palm
Phoenix loureiroi contains solitary and clustering plants with trunks from 1–4 m high and 25 cm in width, usually covered in old leaf bases. The leaves vary to some degree but usually reach 2 m in length with leaflets wide at the base and sharply pointed apices. The leaflets emerge from the rachis at varying angles creating a stiff, plumose leaf. The fruit is a single-seeded drupe, bluish-black when ripe, produced on erect, yellow inflorescences, usually hidden within the leaf crown. The species is noted for its variability in different habitats.
Pygmy date palm
Pygmy date palm (Phoenix roebelenii) is a palm species native to China, Laos, and Vietnam. Pygmy date palm is commonly cultivated as an indoor houseplant. This plant requires direct sunlight for optimal growth. In nature, it grows alongside rivers.
Scientific Classification
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