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Plant Species of the genus Archontophoenix
Information about this genus
Name: Archontophoenix
Cultivation: CULTIVATION: These are popular ornamental palms for frost-free climates, favored by landscapers for their fast early growth and complete shedding of old fronds to give a clean trunk. Although fairly sun hardy (Archontophoenix alexandrae in particular), they are shallow rooted and like a well-mulched soil and plentiful watering in dry periods. It is better to wait for old fronds and flowering branches to be cast off than try to cut them off. Propagate from freshly fallen and cleaned seed, which should germinate in a month or two with sufficient warmth. Young plants are best screened from strong sun until their crown reaches its full spread.
Description: Endemic to eastern Australia, this palm genus consists of 6 species, although before 1994 only 2 were recognized. They are elegant tall palms with a bare, ringed trunk topped by a crownshaft of tightly furled frond bases, from the top of which the feather-like frond blades arch gracefully outward. Each frond consists of numerous strap-like leaflets closely spaced in 2 regular rows along either side of the frond midrib; from base to tip the frond is usually twisted through 90 degrees so that near its outer end the leaflets stand almost vertically. A succession of flowering branches emerges from the trunk just below the crownshaft, each enclosed in a pair of large, smooth, interlocking bracts from which the mass of flowering branchlets burst out just before the flowers open. Numerous star-shaped cream to pale mauve flowers are strung along the pendulous branchlets, attracting insects. They are followed by globular red fruit with thin, dryish flesh enclosing a single round seed. During some seasons both flowering and fruiting branches may be present at once.
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