Can you identify this palm

[Gbarce]

I just saw this in a plant show.

The overall height is about 2 . 5 feet.

It doesn't seem to be forming a trunk and just spreads by producing a lot of suckers

[palmazon]

Chamaedorea cataractarum

[dmc]

I agree cat palm

[Josh-O]

cat palm

[Palmdude]

Great palms!

[TheWaterbug]

Looking at the remnants of my summer garden I see weed, onion, leek, weed, onion, leek, palm seedling!

There's no palm tree within 100 yds, so I assume the seed was dropped by a bird.

Is this enough to identify? Is this worth potting up and keeping?

[Kim]

Possibly a queen palm, Syagrus romanzoffiana. Very fast, and big.

[TheWaterbug]

Possibly a queen palm, Syagrus romanzoffiana. Very fast, and big.

Those look nice, and they appear to grow well in pots. I've been using E.B. Stone's Cactus Mix for other plants; would their Citrus and Palm mix do well for this palm? Should I mix in some sand, or just go 100% soil mix?

[doranakandawatta]

I wish I could find palm seedlings in my vegetable garden, let's say: Lodoicea seedlings from seeds dropped by a bird.

Lucky you

[Josh-O]

look like a syagrus to me?

[tjwalters]

What bird(s) in CA would be able to spread seeds of S. romanzoffiana? (Maybe crows?) Also, aren't the first leaves of this species entire (not split)?

[Ben in Norcal]

What bird(s) in CA would be able to spread seeds of S. romanzoffiana? (Maybe crows?) Also, aren't the first leaves of this species entire (not split)?

Rats and squirrels sure like them in my yard...

[dmc]

What bird(s) in CA would be able to spread seeds of S. romanzoffiana? (Maybe crows?) Also, aren't the first leaves of this species entire (not split)?

for me its the squirrels that I always see running around with the seed. I think your looking at 2 separate strap leaves not

a split leaf. Always finding volunteers popping up around the yard of this species.

[tjwalters]

What bird(s) in CA would be able to spread seeds of S. romanzoffiana? (Maybe crows?) Also, aren't the first leaves of this species entire (not split)?

for me its the squirrels that I always see running around with the seed. I think your looking at 2 separate strap leaves not

a split leaf. Always finding volunteers popping up around the yard of this species.

Yes, I think you are correct - 2 separate strap leaves.

[TheWaterbug]

What bird(s) in CA would be able to spread seeds of S. romanzoffiana? (Maybe crows?)

It could be carried by an African swallow! Oh, yeah, an African swallow maybe, but not a European swallow.

Sorry about the lousy photo. It was too bright. I'll try to take a better picture when I get back to Los Angeles.

Any tips on how to properly dig up and pot a seedling?

[tjwalters]

It could be carried by an African swallow! Oh, yeah, an African swallow maybe, but not a European swallow.

A coconut, maybe, but not a queen palm seed. It's a simple question of weight ratios.

[TheWaterbug]

So, a month later, I had time, a pot, and some soil. The tap root was about 5/16" in diameter, and I lost a few inches of it digging it out :-o

Does this still look like a Queen Palm?

Will the loss of a few inches of taproot be really traumatic?

[Ben in Norcal]

That's a W. robusta, isn't it, with that maroon color coming out?

[Stevetoad]

Looks like a washie to me too.

[Kostas]

Washingtonia robusta for sure!

[TheWaterbug]

Is this another Washingtonia robusta? 

This is in the exact same place as the seedling I removed 3 years ago, and it's been growing for ~18-24 months, I'd guess. So the birds keep dropping them here.

Is this of value to anyone? This is in a section of my garden that's going to get plowed and planted with corn this spring, so it needs to make like a tree and leave.

Can a palm of this size be potted and/or transplanted? Is it worth potting and/or transplanting? Is it hard to dig out?

I'm in Los Angeles-ish, zip code 90274, if anyone wants to come and get this. My garden backs up to a horse trail that you can drive a pickup truck through.

Edited January 3, 2018 by TheWaterbug

[Kim]

No value where you are. As you can see, they grow like weeds.  At least you'll be able to eat the corn!