PALM 



PALM 



2441 



2733. 



Germination of 

 Chrysalidocar- 



pus lutescens. 



TRIBE COCOIXE.E. Lis. pinnatiscct, the Ifts. with 

 reduplicate sides: spadices interfoliar, unisexual or 

 androgynous, the spathes 2 or more: inferior fls. often 

 in S's, the middle one female; ovary 1-7-loculed: fr. 

 large, drupe-like, 1-7-loculed, the stigma terminal, 

 the endocarp or sheU hard and woody and provided 

 irith 3-7 pores. 

 Bactris. Astrocaryum, Acrocomia, Martinezia, Ekeis, 



Diplothemium, Cocos, Maximiliana, Scheelea, Attalea, 



Jubaea, Desmoncus. 



There is very little accessible mon- 

 ographic literature on the palms. Mar- 



tius' "Historia Xaturalis Palmarum," 



Munich, three volumes, 1823 to 1850, is 



a standard work. Kerchove de Denter- 



ghem's "Les Pahniers," Paris, 1878, is 



an important work. A popular running 



account of palms and the various kinds, 



by William Watson, will be found in the 



following places in Gardeners' Chronicle: 

 (volume 22), pages 426, 522, 595, 



728 74S: 1885 (volume 23), pages 338, 



410, 439; 1885 (volume 24), pages 362, 

 394, 586, 748; 1886 (volume 25), pages 

 75, 139, 557; 1886 (volume 26) pages 

 491, 652; 1887 (volume 2, series 3) 

 pages 156, 304; 1891 (volume 9), pages 

 234, 298, 671; 1893 (volume 13), pages 

 260. 332. 



Palm-culture, for decorative purposes 

 in the United States, has made its 

 greatest progress within the past 

 twenty -five years, and now seems to 

 be a well-established business, with the 

 prospect of a steady increase as the 

 adaptability of these plants becomes 

 better understood. A great area of 

 glass is now in use for palm-culture 

 alone, the middle states being the cen- 

 ter of this industry, though large num- 

 bers are also grown in a few southern 

 states; and owing to a favorable cli- 

 mate and gradually improving business 

 methods, it seems probable that Ameri- 

 can growers will soon be able to com- 

 pete with their more experienced 

 brethren of Europe in this class of 

 plants. 



The species most used in commercial 

 horticulture in the United States are 

 contained in a very short list, the 

 greater quantity being confined to five 

 species, namely, Livistona chinensis, 

 Hoicea Belmoreana, Howea Forsteriana, 

 Chrysalidocarpus lutescens, and Cocos 

 Weddettiana, while less quantities of 

 Caryota urens, several species of Phoenix, 

 P. canariensis being very largely 

 planted outdoors in the South and on 

 portions of the Pacific coast, Seaforthia 

 ekgans and some others of the Ptycho- 

 spenna group, and some few livistonas 

 cover the extent of the catalogue for 

 many growers. 



Of these, the seeds are imported in 

 most cases, and on the quality of these 

 seeds the success of the grower de- 

 pends, so far as getting up a stock is 

 concerned. Most of these species germi- 

 nate readily in a warm greenhouse, 

 providing the seeds are fresh, the slow- 

 est of the common commercial palms 

 being the howeas. In small quantities 

 these seeds are usually sown in about 

 6-inch pots, the pots being well drained 



2734. Germina- 

 tion of Livistona. 



and nearly filled with light soil, then the seeds sown 

 thickly and covered with % inch of soil, watered 

 thoroughly and placed where they may receive the 

 benefit of some bottom heat ; and at no time should 

 they be allowed to become very dry. The period 

 required for germination varies greatly with different 

 species, Livistona chinensis germinating in two or three 

 weeks if fresh, and being ready for potting in about 

 two months, while seeds of some of the attaleas have 

 been known to remain in the earth for fully three years 

 before starting. 



The seedlings of many species are very much alike, 

 the seed-leaf in many instances being a long narrow 

 simple leaflet, this description often applying equally 

 to the seedlings of both fan-leaved and pinnate-leaved 

 species; and from this fact it is somewhat difficult to 

 recognize a species while in the juvenile form. Figs. 

 2733-2736 show stages in the germination of common 

 palms. Special cultural notes for particular species of 

 palms will be found throughout the Cyclopedia, but 

 at this time a few general remarks regarding treatment 

 of palms as a whole may be 

 admissible. It has already 

 been noted that palms in 

 general are tropical in 

 nature, and while there are 

 a number of species that 

 are found at considerable 

 elevations, where the nights 

 are decidedly cool, yet in a 

 young state the same species 

 may make more progress 

 in a night temperature of 

 60 F.; and with this in 

 view, a minimum tempera- 

 ture during the winter of 

 56 to 60 is safest for young 

 and growing palms, while an 

 advance of 15 to 20 during 

 the day will not hurt them. 



An abundance of water 

 is required, for many palms 

 grow on the banks of rivers 

 or in swampy ground; and 

 even those found on high 

 and rocky ground send their 

 roots down to such a depth 

 as to find a liberal water- 

 supply. 



Rotted sod is the basis 

 for the best soil for palms, 

 and a fair proportion of 

 stable manure is a safe 

 fertilizer, such a soil being 

 mixed with various propor- 

 tions of peat or sand, to 

 make it lighter and more 

 open for some delicate 

 species. 



Insects are frequently troublesome if allowed to gain 

 headway, various scale insects doing the greatest 

 damage, while red-spiders and thrips may become 

 established unless forcible syringing is persisted in. 

 The most successful practice requires close observation 

 on the part of the grower, and the prompt removal of 

 all insects. Many other pests are also known and in the 

 report of the Missouri Botanical Garden for 1898, 

 Trelease gives an account of many of these. Busch in a 

 report on investigation of diseases of the coconut palm 

 in United States Department of Agriculture Bulletin 

 of Entomology II. 38, 1902, gives an account of a disease 

 that threatened the coconut industry in Trop. America. 



Summer care of palms. 



Some shading throughout the summer is best, the 

 foliage grown under glass being more tender than that 



2735. Germination of Cocos 

 Weddelliana. 



