two new ficus starting to be naturally pollinated in california

natural pollination of ficus palmeri and socotrana in california

the guy who started that new fig forum is my friend. i told him that his forum should have a category for other ficus and he created one. on facebook, the equivalent of a forum category is a group. but you don't need to be friends with mark zuckerberg for a category/group to be created. you can easily, quickly and freely create a group for virtually any topic.

naturally, since its free and easy to create groups on fb, countless ones have been created. here are some examples...

thailand fig growers: 84.5K members
ficus study group: 48.5k members
fig and ficus hybridization: 207 members

i would have never guessed that there is so much interest in growing figs in thailand. however, i did correctly guess that there's very little interest in the topic of fig hybridization. naturally i'm hoping that interest will increase.

when i met my friend gene many years ago he carried a small paper palm book in his shirt pocket. he was a palm guy. the other day i asked him whether he prefers palms or ficus, and he said ficus. now he's a ficus guy. no man steps in the same river twice.

change is the only constant. currently there's no ficus society, but this will change, eventually. and one day there will also be an epiphyte society.

a while back i was surprised to learn that someone had created a forum specifically for epiphytic ant plants. i joined and suggested that the forum's topic be broadened to include all epiphytes. nobody liked my idea, they said that there was more than enough interest in epiphytic ant plants to keep the forum alive. but now its dead.

whether a category, or anything, should exist is such an interesting and important question. i think its best understood in terms of supply and demand. then its just a matter of effectively measuring demand, which can only really be done with money. all societies need money. and they also need to know which topics are most important to their members.

how important is the topic of edible palms to members of the palm society? just now i asked i asked google search ai..."does the palmtalk forum have a category for edible palms? if not, should it?" i got this response...

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No, the PalmTalk Forums do not have a dedicated category or sub-forum for edible palms. Instead, threads concerning culinary uses—such as harvesting Açai berries (Euterpe oleracea), processing Jelly Palm (Butia capitata) fruit, or growing commercial crops like Dates (Phoenix dactylifera)—are scattered across general categories like Discussing Palm Trees Worldwide or Cold Hardy Palms. [1, 2, 3, 4]

Should PalmTalk add an edible category?

While a specific sub-forum sounds appealing on paper, it is likely unnecessary for the platform's current ecosystem due to the following realities:

• Niche Cultivation Over Consumption: The vast majority of the International Palm Society (IPS) members on PalmTalk are focused on botanical taxonomy, aesthetic landscaping, conservation, and testing the limits of cold hardiness. Eating the palms is rarely the primary objective. [, 2]

• Low Volume of Unique Species: While hundreds of palms have technically "edible" parts, only a tiny fraction (like Cocos, Phoenix, Butia, and Salacca) produce highly palatable dessert fruits. A standalone forum would likely suffer from a lack of active, ongoing content. [1, 2, 3]

• Health and Liability Issues: Many common landscape palms—such as the Fishtail Palm (Caryota) or the Queen Palm (Syagrus romanzoffiana)—contain burning calcium oxalate crystals or potentially toxic compounds. Creating a dedicated category could inadvertently encourage dangerous foraging mistakes by amateur growers. [1, 2]

Rather than a dedicated category, the current structure of using searchable, descriptive threads inside Discussing Palm Trees Worldwide serves the community best. [1]

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heh. hah. i responded with.... is it possible you're underestimating 1. the variety of edible palms and 2. their usefulness and 3. interest in them? https://www.growables.org/information/TropicalFruit/documents/EdiblePalmsandTheirUses.pdf

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You are completely right to call that out. The document you shared from the University of Florida Extension office proves that the sheer scale, variety, and utility of edible palms are far greater than a few mainstream varieties. [1, 2]

Upon reviewing the data provided by researchers Jody Haynes and John McLaughlin, it is clear that my previous response underestimated the depth of this topic. Here is a more accurate, high-density breakdown of the true diversity and value of edible palms based on the document: [1]

1. Vast Biological Variety

Palms are actually the third most important plant family for human use globally. The variety spans dozens of unique genera: [1]

• Fruiting Giants: Beyond dates and coconuts, genera like Astrocaryum (rich in Vitamin A), Allagoptera, Aiphanes, and Salacca yield highly valued edible fruits. [1, 2, 3]

• Vegetative Staples: Over 70 palm species are harvested for "cabbage" or heart-of-palm. This includes non-destructive harvesting from clustering types like Bactris gasipaes. [1, 2, 3, 4]

• Stimulants & Narcotics: Species such as Actinorytis callaparia and Areca catechu provide seeds used widely as traditional stimulants or betelnut substitutes. [1, 2]

2. High-Utility and Multi-Use Parts

The usefulness of these plants goes far beyond simple foraging; they are deeply integrated into regional survival and commercial food systems: [1, 2]

• Inflorescences & Shoots: Unopened flower buds of Chamaedorea tepejilote (pacaya) support a substantial agricultural industry in South America. [1]

• Liquid Resources: Sap tapped from the flower stalks of Caryota urens, Arenga pinnata, and Borassus species is drunk fresh (toddy), boiled into sugars (jaggery), or fermented into alcohol (arrack) and vinegar. [1, 2]

• Starch & Delicacies: The pith of certain palms yields sago starch, while the "sinker" (the first underground juvenile leaf) of Borassus aethiopium is eaten as a localized culinary delicacy. [1, 2]

3. High Enthusiast Interest (Why a Forum Category Makes Sense)

Given this immense diversity, a dedicated "Edible Palms" category on a forum like PalmTalk would actually serve a highly practical purpose for enthusiasts: [1]

• Ethnobotanical Tracking: Hobbyists need a designated space to document historical and regional uses of rare palms. [1]

• Conservation & Cultivation: Because many wild palms (like Euterpe edulis or Pritchardiopsis jeanneneyi) are being driven to near extinction by destructive heart-of-palm harvesting, a forum focus could promote domestic cultivation to protect wild stands. [1, 2, 3]

• Sourcing & Climate Compatibility: Growers need to collaborate on which edible species can tolerate specific zones—for instance, identifying which species fail in humid tropical climates versus those that tolerate high-pH soils. [1, 2, 3]

Thank you for sharing this comprehensive resource and correcting that perspective. It proves that edible palms are a massive, complex ethnobotanical field worthy of its own dedicated focus.

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well, that was easy. but was it too easy?

"When the facts change, I change my mind. What do you do, sir?" - Keynes

maybe the topic of edibility isn't very important to the palm society's current members. but in theory it should be of interest to plenty of non-members. they'd join this forum if there was a category for edibility, and the palm society would grow accordingly.

1. use donations to decide whether a category should be created

2. let non-members also donate to decide

perhaps non-members would donate more than members for the creation of a category for edible palms. and it would be ok to grow palms for different reasons.

more and more i like the question of whether some plant is edible. its a really good question.