The Illusive Needle Palm

[Jcalvin]

Over the last few years, when I take trips through the lower southern portion of Georgia to the panhandle of Florida, I’ve looked for Needle Palms in the areas I thought they could be found. I’ve yet to find an established population in the wild in southern Georgia or northern Florida besides a couple counties south of Jacksonville. Yesterday was no exception. 
My wife and I traveled to Live Oak and decided to go to Suwannee River State Park. All I found was Saw Palmetto, Sabal Palmetto and Sabal minor. The few maps that I’d seen have various suggestions, but none of them seem reliable: For instance, I’ve never seen Needle Palm growing in Glynn County, Camden County, or Liberty county or on the western edges of the okefenokee swamp in Ware, or Clinch County.   
 

Does anyone know of any wild populations of needle palm in southern Georgia (not middle Georgia) or the extreme northern portion of Florida along the Georgia/Florida border. 

[Steve in Florida]

Try contacting an administrator with the state parks and ask them where to find needle palms in habitat.  They have databases on all the species found at each park.

[SeanK]

Seen them along I10 in AL/LA somewhere.

Edited February 14, 2022 by SeanK