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I found an interesting population of Rhapidophyllum hystrix in Georgia


Bigfish

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I found a small population of Rhapidophyllum hystrix last month in Georgia that I found interesting and worth mentioning.  

 

The female palms there all had below-ground trunks (like Sabal minor), except for a pair of most likely very old palms that had about a foot of above-ground trunk.  They were reproducing adults, and I estimate that they were all well over ten years old (maybe quite a bit older).  There were very few pups per plant (typically 2-3, but as many as 4-5), and the pups were a greater distance than normal from the mother trunk.  The petioles were several feet long, and the palms had a more open appearance than a typical Needle Palm.  

 

It should be noted that these palms were not very far away from a "normal" population, probably less than 50 yards.  I'm very curious as to why the trunks don't emerge from the ground.  As mentioned, there was a female palm with two trunks that each had about a foot of above-ground trunk (for some reason, I neglected to photograph this palm), so apparently with great age the trunks do emerge.  I'm sure that the amount of shade does not play a role, but I can't rule out soil playing a role.  Then again, it could just be genetics!  I did collect seeds, but it will be years before it can be determined if the below-ground trait is passed on genetically.

 

There were several males in the vicinity, and one old male (pictured) had several feet of trunk above ground.  

Onto the pictures!

 

Palm #1, with 4-5 trunks.  Palm #2 is the last picture.

 

 

 

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Palm #3.  I can't remember if this one was male or not, and can't spot any old inflorescences.  There may be another trunk right behind the main one.

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If it is a genetic trait, then you have an even hardier Needle Palm for cultivation, since the bud is protected underground for many, many years.  These particular palms were close to a creek bank, which makes me wonder if soils or perhaps the water table plays a role.  I'd really like to dig one up one day and see if the trunk is morphologically distinct from "normal" Needles!  Pictures don't do them justice, as usual.  These palms were quite distinct from other populations that I have visited (which is a LOT, lol).

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17 minutes ago, TexasColdHardyPalms said:

Frank, any chance the creek flooded and covered them up a bit with soil/silt?

Joseph, I can't completely discount that as a possibility, but it certainly didn't appear that way to me.  It would have had to be a pretty significant amount of silt to uniformly cover right up to the top of the trunks.  Other trees and shrubs in the area seemed to not have had any soil/silt deposits around them.  I do suppose that it's possible that something like that happened many years ago though.  I really need to get back there and do some excavation!

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Come to think of it, there were more Needles along the same creekbank, less than a quarter mile away (but upstream), that appeared normal.  The creek is the same width in both areas.  I still can't discount that as a possibility though.  I need to go back and study the area more.  

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  • 5 weeks later...

Very cool pics ... also noticed the accumulation of fallen leaf litter around the emerging growth point / stem. Quite likely mother natures insulator.

Cheers, Barrie.

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  • 1 year later...
On ‎12‎/‎25‎/‎2016‎ ‎10‎:‎02‎:‎00‎, Bigfish said:

If it is a genetic trait, then you have an even hardier Needle Palm for cultivation, since the bud is protected underground for many, many years.  These particular palms were close to a creek bank, which makes me wonder if soils or perhaps the water table plays a role.  I'd really like to dig one up one day and see if the trunk is morphologically distinct from "normal" Needles!  Pictures don't do them justice, as usual.  These palms were quite distinct from other populations that I have visited (which is a LOT, lol).

Long lived palms that are not particularly fast in habitat. It's an understory palm that does not need to push towards the canopy.

They look happy and healthy. :D

Coral Gables, FL 8 miles North of Fairchild USDA Zone 10B

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  • 1 year later...
52 minutes ago, Jcalvin said:

Where in Georgia was this? 

Bibb County.  There’s another similar population that exhibits the same phenotype in Twiggs County.

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