Brahea armata vs. sp. 'Super Silver'

[mppalms]

I realize this is probably a matter of personal taste, and there may be disagreement, but I'm wondering what people on this board think.  I've seen a palm simply labelled Brahea sp. 'Super Silver', which may be a form of Brahea nitida (?).  How does it look compared with B. armata?  I really like the look of B. armata and may need to include this palm in future plans, but I wanted to look into other silver-/blue-leaved palms, too.

Jason

[Al in Kona]

Are there even any Brahea 'Super Silver' in cultivation big enough to show their true color and character?  Isn't this a fairly new introduction?  Maybe someone has a picture of it in habitat.  I'd like to see that as I do have a small one gallon size plant which I plan to plant in ground soon, so it would be nice to see what it looks like.

[Toby]

I don't think there are any bigger plants in cultivation outside of Mexico. This palm has been confused with B. nitida due to the lack of thorns on the petiole, but the inflorescence is VERY different.

Here is one for the color:

and plants in flower:

B. nitida has big, weepy inflorescences with very thin, drooping flowering branches.

Best, TOBY

[Kris]

Dear Friends  

Lovely topic ! and its great to have even Toby interacting with us.i hope his regular participation in our main discussion boards will be of great knowledge to all the Newcommers to this palm arena like me...! Hope to hear more from you..Sir.

here is a still of my blue hasper palm growing in our terrace gardens in chennai(India)

Love,

Kris  

[Zac in NC]

I hate to say this, but I kind of disagree with Toby( sorry, I have to). The inflorescence is more similar to nitida( and to moorei) and not at all like the other part of the genus such as armata and edulis. I am not saying it is nitida, though Richard would love me to say that, lumper that he is. I think it is allied to nitida( well, calcarea to be more specific). Perhaps Richard can post some of RLs pics from the recent trip to Mexico?  

Zac

[Toby]

Zac,

Similar to moorei???? I agree with you that the inflorescence has more similarities to B. nitida (calcarea) than B armata, I wasn't even comparing it to the latter. But B. moorei surely not!

Best, TOBY

[mppalms]

In planning for the future, I'm thinking a couple of Brahea armata and a Dypsis decipiens or two in the front might be a killer cold-hardy (enough) combination.   I need to put the more cold-sensitive stuff in areas that either have better protection or are hidden from view in the front in case we get another 1990-style "unprecedented" freeze (down to -6 or -7 deg. C in our area).

Any comment on the appearance of the leaves?  It appears that the leaf blades on the B. armata are a bit wider than on the B. 'Super Silver'.  It is hard to distinguish the color from photos on an LCD monitor.  The B. armatas I have seen in person are stunning.  I'm surprised they are not planted all over the SF bay area since they seem fully hardy.

Thanks for your comments, Toby and Zac.  I don't know much about the B. 'Super Silver' other than that they are easy to kill with too much water.  

Jason

[richtrav]

They're very small pics, but this shots of the inflorescences of Super Silver do resemble those of nitida. Even from that distant shot it certainly looks closer to nitida (or moorei) than anything in the elegans/armata/brandegeei or dulcis/decumbens complexes. Some good high-resolution shots would be nice.

[Charles Wychgel]

Would this be the one called Brahea "Oaxaca blue"?

On a recent trip to Oaxaca and adjacent provinces we saw massive populations of Brahea dulcis and some other very blue Brahea's that I assumed were just a blue form of dulcis, growing snakewise along the ground in the desert.

Funny thing is the prostrate trunks of the blue palms were making shoots all along the trunk and the shoots were green.

Attached is a pic of a Brahea in my garden labeled Brahea nitida(bought as a seedling some ten years ago from Toby Spanner)

@Zac where are the pix that RL made?

[Toby]

Hi Charles,

Beautiful plant! That does look like "Super Silver" indeed.

Best, TOBY

[richtrav]

I would have those pics. They were taken from a distance though

[Kris]

Dear Charles  

Lovely still and the color looks preety heavenly too !

thanks & love,

Kris  

[Takil-Explorer]

Is this maybe Brahea 'Super Silver? I have seen the palms near Zapotitlan las Salinas arround 1800-2000 meters in a dessert area on limestone

[Takil-Explorer]

Here is the pcture. Zapotitlan las Salinas is southwest of Tehuacan in a semi dessert area where there are many cacti and Beaucarnea gracilis also. I have collected seeds under these palms wich have grown now in 4 green palms with no thorns on the leavestalks. I took the pictures in 2003.

Alexander

[Takil-Explorer]

The trunks of the Brahea I saw where strait, not curving like B. dulcis wich was also growing in that same area. The B. dulcis where forming clumps, a bit like a Chamaerops. The blue Brahea did not do that!

Alexander