Clarification of Areca form needed

[plantchaser]

Hello.

The following plant was sold to me as an Areca catechu dwarf but after further reading, I have my doubts. I've come across the term semi-dwarf, as well. I would appreciate it if someone could enlighten me some more on the differences between forms.

The plant I have looks like this. Thanks in advance.

[amazon exotics]

It appears to me to be the "Dwarf" and stretched from not enough sun. JMO

[Gbarce]

Apparently, seeds that come from a dwarf areca catechu palm don't all turn out the same.

As a loose term used on this forum a "true dwarf" is one that shows all the stunted features such as the absence of a petiole, a really fat and squat looking trunk, the leaves that are all bunched together with a lot of leaflets that don't even seperate. I've also observed that the end lof the leaf on mine is "squared off"-- meaning it doesn't taper to a point.

A "semi dwarf' is an A. Catechu that exhibits some charachteristics of the true dwarf. It might have no petioles but still grows tall. Some have fatter trunks but just not fat or chunky enough that you would regard it as a dwarf. It's hard to describe in words but when you see it you will know it. If you have a dwarf areca catechu that you say to yourself "kind of" looks like a dwarf then it is probably just a semi dwarf. A true dwarf is unmistakable when you see it.

Now the question is -- when you are buying a seedling how do you know if it is a true dwarf of not? It's almost impossible to tell and I guess there will always be a risk involved . Some say look for very short or an actual absence of a petiole. Me personally, after observing my true dwarf develop I would look for the combination of features I listed above and in particular the "squared off" leaf. When I was selectingfrom many seedlings that was the feature that made me decide to get my plant from the batch of dwarf arecas being sold.

Just to give you some reference I was only positive that my palm was a true dwarf when it was about 2.5 feet tall. by that time the petioled had truly disappeared and the leaves in the crown were really really crowded and scrunched in tight in the middle. It didn't have a trunk at this point.

I guess the safest bet is to buy a plant when it is about 2 feet tall already and displaying all the features of a "true dwarf". Buying something small and just hoping it turns out to be a "true dwarf" might not be worth the time you invest in it -- plus you avoid the disappointement years later when you discover that you did not get what you thought you bought.

[PalmatierMeg]

I have both a dwarf and semi-dwarf and concur with everything Gene said. I was lucky enough to go the nursery and pick out my own dwarf from about a dozen palms. What I looked for was petioles 1" or less long, a wide, short crownshaft and stubbiest leaves. And now I know thanks to Gene to also look for blunt fronds.

My semi-dwarf is much taller than my dwarf but still shorter and squatter than normal. I'm posting a photo of each in my shade garden where they are only a few feet apart. Even though I protected them with double flannel on nights below 40F these guys took a battering from the cold. But they survived. Fortunately they grow fairly fast and should look good again by summer. Arecas are so cold-sensitive.

Areca catechu dwarf - 11/10

Areca catechu semi-dwarf - 11/10

[plantchaser]

Thanks everyone for your information. I guess what I have is not a true dwarf.

[Just1MorePalm]

Hello.

The following plant was sold to me as an Areca catechu dwarf but after further reading, I have my doubts. I've come across the term semi-dwarf, as well. I would appreciate it if someone could enlighten me some more on the differences between forms.

The plant I have looks like this. Thanks in advance.

Very nice and healthy palm...Nice Job!

[Gbarce]

Here are some photos to illustrate the features to look for

Looki down into the crown it looks really tight and crowded

[Gbarce]

The end of the leaf is "squared off" or maybe a better description is tha it does not taper as sharply.

I kind of observed this from my seedling when it was pretty young-- maybe jus ta foot tall and had just a few leaves

The top edge was roughly a straight line

[Gbarce]

Quite a number of the leaflets don't seperate. Many in pairs and sometimes three leaflets don't split up

The leaflet on the left is a single and the one right beside it is a double

[Gbarce]

lots of times this wrinkling occurs on the leaflets at the end of the leaf. Probably because the spear is compressed as it squeezes out of the very tight crown

[Gbarce]

No Petioles. Leaflets start at the crown shaft.

When I bought my seedling its started out with petioles but they did look shorter than normal to me. As the plant grew from a 1 footer to a 2 footer the petioles gradually shortened

[Gbarce]

Here's what the leaflets look like from the back

Notice that there is hardly any spaces in between them

[fan palm]

Well explained Gene! those photos would be great in a species article

[Gbarce]

Thanks- I kind of got obsessed with identifying a "true dwarf" after several purchases that turned out to be "semi-dwarfs". It really pissed me off to realize that my seedlings weren't going to get any stubbier as they grow up after a couple of years of waiting.

Here's what the nodes between leaves look like on a regular catechu

And here it is on a dwarf

[Gbarce]

When you have all the features in a plant, it's pretty obvious when you see a "true dwarf"

[plantchaser]

Thanks. That was very concise and informative. The pictures are extremely helpful.

[Gbarce]

Plant chaser- now that I know who you are I think we may have even bought from the same source-- hehe

[www.dadluvsu.com]

That is a lovely specimen Gene. WOW!

[Gbarce]

Bill- it took several attempts to finally get one ( and a few months of waiting to be sure), Planted it in a prominent spot in the garden. I'd love to get a group of these. I wonder how long before these set seed

[www.dadluvsu.com]

put me in the front of the list for those seed...

[plantchaser]

Gene, I think so too.

[Kim]

Thanks for the excellent tutorial!

[amazon exotics]

Thanks everyone for your information. I guess what I have is not a true dwarf.

I disagree with your comment. Judging by the short petioles your palm has I would say it has hybrid blood in it. It for sure is not normal.

[plantchaser]

I agree it isn't quite normal. I had wanted a dwarf but when I started having doubts I just thought it best to get a more accurate ID.

I think it still looks nice in its own way.