Palms

The Veitchia arecina, also known as the Montgomery Palm,  is a very attractive, tall, solitary, pinnate palm with a slender grey trunk growing up to 60 feet high. It has a slender, white crown shaft with black, gray and green speckling. Its long, arching leaves have long green slightly drooping leaflets with serrated tips.

This palm’s inflorescence is stiffly arching, and branched to three or four orders with green fruits that turn red when ripe. Greenish to white male and female flowers are borne on the same inflorescence. These fruits and flowers can be seen in the featured photos taken in W.S. Merwin’s garden.

Veitchia arecina are native to the volcanic archipelago Vanuatu, an Oceanian island nation located in the South Pacific Ocean. They find their home in the moist rainforest, where they are an endangered species (IUCN 2.3). The lost of this species is linked to habitat loss due to human development..

This is one of the easier Veitchias to grow, and is very hardy in tropical environments.

There are 68 of this species of palm growing in the Merwin Palm Collection, ranging from seedling to mature.

---

Want to “virtually explore” the Merwin Palm Collection? Search through our archive of Palm Facts of the Week, featuring palms hand-planted by W.S Merwin. To search through the list of Merwin Palms,  visit our online database.

If you’re inspired to help The Merwin Conservancy preserve and care for the Merwin Palm Collection into the future, please consider making a tax-deductible donation.

Carpoxylon macrospermum is a species of palm endemic to the lowland rainforests in the southernmost parts of the Vanuatu archipelago: the islands of Tanna, Futuna and Anatom. Natural stands are very rare; they are more commonly found planted near dwellings or small holdings. This tree is considered “Critically Endangered” according to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, with only approximately 40 trees left in the wild.

This is a very tall palm sometimes exceeding 25 meters in height.  The generic name (carpo-, fruit; xylon, woody) refers to the thick, woody endocarp that encloses a single seed, which is notable for the pale streaks on the seed coat. The genus Carpoxylon is montypic, meaning that it contains only one species. Capoxylon macrospermum has long been an enigma for palm botanists, as it was “rediscovered” in 1987 on the island of Espirtu Santo, Vanuatu.

Carpoxylon macrospermum is primarily used as ornamental palms in parks and gardens; however, there are several uses recorded from Vanuatu. The stem can be used as a building material and the enlarged base can be prepared as feed for domestic pigs. The leaflets can be used as a traditional roofing material in the same way as the coconut palm (Cocos nucifera). The roots are used in the preparation of numerous remedies. The immature (green) fruit are edible and are often eaten by local inhabitants.

The principal threat to this palm is the deterioration of its habitat by human activities. Deforestation for agriculture and possible loss of the seed dispersal agent(s) contribute to this palm’s uncertain future.

There are currently no specific conservation areas for this species, but like all other native  Arecaceae, it is protected by law in Vanuatu. The Vanuatu Environment Unit has classed Carpoxylon macrospermum as high priority in terms of conservation.

Carpoxylon macrospermum is often cultivated in rural areas for its ornamental qualities, we have found examples of cultivated specimens on several islands, including Espiritu Santo, Mallicolo, Paama, Efate, Tanna and Anatom. This palm is both highly ornamental and easy to grow and therefore has great potential in horticulture, however the unavailability of seeds currently limits its use.

There are 9 of this species of palm growing in the Merwin Palm Forest today.

---

Want to “virtually explore” the Merwin Palm Collection? Search through our archive of Featured Palms hand-planted by W.S Merwin. To search through the Online Merwin Palm Database, visit this link.

If you’re inspired to help The Merwin Conservancy preserve and care for the world-renowned Merwin Palm Collection into the future, please consider making a tax-deductible donation.

Photos by Sara Tekula

The Hydriastele microspadix is a slender, clumping palm endemic to New Guinea that produces a compact crown of short leaves with clustered, somewhat fishtail-shaped leaflets.

This species belongs to the genus Hydriastele, a diverse and widespread genus of flowering plant in the palm family found throughout Australia and New Zealand, Melanesia, Polynesia, and Southeast Asia. It is named in Greek, combining the name “hydriad”, a water nymph in mythology, and the word for “column”.

The Hydriastele genus has a known natural range including a number of tropical settings in Sulawesi, the Maluku Islands, New Guinea, Australia, the Bismarck Archipelago, the Solomon Islands, New Hebrides, Fiji, and Palau. This species is only found in New Guinea.

Very often they are found in rain forests of the montane and low lying varieties or upon ultrabasic rock, limestone ridges and serpentine faces.

There is one specimen from this species thriving in Merwin’s garden.

---

Want to virtually “explore” the Merwin Palm Collection? Search through our archive of Palm Facts of the Week, featuring palms hand-planted by W.S Merwin. To search through the Online Merwin Palm Database, visit this link.

If you’re inspired to help The Merwin Conservancy preserve and care for the world-renowned Merwin Palm Collection into the future, please consider making a tax-deductible donation.