PLANTS OF DADE COUNTY, FLORIDA 
17 
leaves and immense pink flowers. It 
may be propagated from seed or cut¬ 
tings and I have established it in my 
low land. 
Kneiffia riparia, belonging to the 
evening primrose family, is a fine, 
branching plant growing in wet land 
along streams, and bearing continually 
large yellow flowers. 
CULTIVATED PALMS 
Feather Palms 
Dade County seems to be a veritable 
paradise for palms. I have about 150 
species native and exotic and nearly all 
of them promise well. Nothing can be 
finer as single isolated specimens or 
groups, or when planted in mixed masses, 
than the palms. Many of the species 
are as yet unattainable or can only be 
had with difficulty and at great expense. 
I have imported a large number of plants 
which have nearly all died on account of 
the long voyage, and also seeds which 
have rarely germinated. But there are 
many fine things for sale at our home 
nurseries now that were unattainable a 
few years ago, and are being offered at 
reasonable prices. I will begin with the 
pinnate palms and go through the genera 
in alphabetical order. 
Archontophcenix alexandrae (known as 
Ptychosperma alexandrae) and A. cun- 
ninghami (Seaforthia elegans) are ele¬ 
gant species offered by many dealers. In 
the former the underside of the leaves 
is a little more silvery than in the latter, 
and the arching leaves do not turn up 
edgewise. They grow to considerable 
size and will do well in the sunshine, but 
should be planted where they are pro¬ 
tected from the winds, as the leaflets 
break up very badly when blown about. 
Areca. I have had several species 
of these fine palms. So far I have not 
been able to make A. catechu, the Ori¬ 
ental Betel Nut, succeed. 
A. glandiformis is a grand palm, and 
is doing splendidly with me. 
A. alicese and A. triandra promise 
well, though I think likely the latter 
should be grown in the shade. 
Astrocaryum. I have only one species, 
{A. mexicanum) planted in the ham¬ 
mock, which is growing slowly, but is in 
good health. The under sides of the 
leaves are a fine, silvery color and the 
petioles and trunk are spiny. 
Attalea. A. cohune is a magnificent 
species from Central America. I have 
seen it in Honduras over 100 feet high 
and Air. O. F. Cook of the Department 
of Agriculture tells me he has measured 
leaves of it 55 feet long. They shoot 
up almost straight for a great distance, 
then curve out slightly at the tips. Com¬ 
modore Monroe has a fine specimen at 
his home in Cocoanut Grove which is 
beginning to form a trunk. It is a 
slow grower when young and has one 
drawback when matured, and that is 
that the old leaves hang on to the plant 
and disfigure it. I have plants of A. 
gomphococca which are doing well. 
Acrocomia. A genus of very spiny 
palms with slender leaflets. I have young 
plants of A. media, A. sclerocarpa and 
A. totai, all of which are doing well in 
the sun on pine land. I have what may 
be A. lasiospatha from Cuba which has 
an immensely swollen stem. 
Bactris. Excessively spiny palms 
which are, however, quite ornamental. 
The leaves seem to suffer from cool 
weather and come out in the spring here 
in bad condition. I have B. gasipaes, 
the Peach Palm of Brazil, B. aurantiaca 
and an unnamed species. 
Caryota, Carat or Fish-tail Palm. I 
have several species. C. blancoi, C. mitis, 
C. purpuracea, C. sobolifera and C. 
urens. C. mitis and sobolifera sucker 
profusely and these suckers may be used 
for propagating if taken off carefully 
after they begin to throw out roots. All 
the species bloom only when fully ma¬ 
tured, beginning to throw out their mag¬ 
nificent tassels, (in C. urens as large as 
a man’s body) immediately under the 
leaves and continuing to bloom down¬ 
ward to the base of the stem, when the 
plant dies. I have had best success with 
them when planted in the shade as they 
seem when in full sunshine to be par¬ 
ticularly subject to blotching of the 
leaves. 
Chamsedorea. Slender, often reed¬ 
like, dioecious palms sometimes throw¬ 
ing up suckers. They should be planted 
