1202 



the name pacayito may be chosen as best suited to use in 

 the United States. Judging from accounts given me by 

 various residents of the Verapaz, this palm commonly 

 occurs in the mountains of that region at elevations 

 of about 4000 to 6000 feet. It always grows in dense 

 forests, and must be considered a shade and moisture- 

 loving species. The soil in which it grows is nothing 

 but decayed leaves for the first several inches, which 

 is kept continually moist by the abundant rains of 

 this region. In Coban the pacayito is a favorite house 

 plant, being grown in pots and tubs and used to dec- 

 orate living rooms and patios. In the city of Guate- 

 mala it is occasionally used for the same purpose, the 

 plants being brought down from Coban. In the forests, 

 the pacayito seems never to reach a greater height than 

 3 feet. It is a true dwarf (one might almost call it 

 a miniature palm), for it reaches maturity and comes 

 into flower when not over a foot high. This dwarf 

 habit makes it of unusual interest as a pot plant for 

 the north, as it can be fruited in an ordinary living 

 room when growing in an eight-inch pot. It makes its 

 character leaves almost as soon as the young plant is 

 out of the seed. I have seen many plants in the forest, 

 not over 4 inches tall, which already had 2 to 4 fully 

 characterized leaves. When quite small it strongly 

 resembles Coeos weddelliana, but the pinnae are somewhat 

 broader and not so numerous. For fern dishes in the 

 northern states it should have great value. When ma- 

 ture, the plant has a slender trunk, perhaps half an 

 inch thick and two feet high. The leaves are a foot 

 to eighteen inches in length, rather finely pinnate, 

 deep green, and graceful, with the rachis stiff but 

 arching slightly. In the Verapaz the flowers are pro- 

 duced in June and July and the small, round seeds, 

 about as large as small peas, ripen in December. 

 Since it is found at considerable elevation in the 

 Verapaz, it seems likely that this palm will be suf- 

 ficiently hardy for cultivation in the open in Cali- 

 fornia and Florida. It should be provided with ample 

 shade, however, and planted in a very moist situa- 

 tion in soil containing a large proportion of leaf 

 mold. As a house plant for the northern states, and 

 for use in fern dishes, it seems to me that this 

 plant possesses unusual possibilities, and I strong- 

 ly recommend it for trial." (Popenoe.) 



Chamaedorea sp. (Phoenicaceae. ) 45022. Pacaya palm 

 seeds from Guatemala. Collected by Mr. Wilson Popenoe, 



