THE PALM HOUSE 25 
Sabal glabra (S. Adansonii), or DWARF PALMETTO PALM, or BLUE 
PALM, is a native of the southern United States. The stem of this 
species is underground, causing the plant to appear stemless. 
Sabal Palmetto, or CABBAGE PALMETTO, is a native of our southeastern 
states; attaining its greatest perfection along rich river banks in Florida. 
It is extensively used as a shade and avenue tree throughout its range. 
The crown bud, or cabbage, is highly valued as a vegetable. The wood 
is very soft and spongy, and will be remembered by school children as 
the wood of which southern forts were built during the Revolution— 
wood so soft that bullets would sink into it instead of penetrating it. 
The trunks are now much used as piles. The bark and leaf sheaths 
are used in making scrubbing brushes. Baskets, hats, and mats are 
made from immature leaves; houses are thatched with mature ones. 
Four other species of sabal also represented here. 
Strelitzia Reginae, or BirD-oF-PARADISE FLOWER, is a member of the 
Musaceae, or Banana family. It is a native of south Africa. The 
flowers are orange and purple, resembling a bird-of-paradise in shape 
and in color arrangement. This flower is one of the most unusual in 
the collection. It blooms here in April. The collection also includes 
S. augusta, a closely related species. 
Trachycarpus excelsa, or FORTUNE'S PALM, is a Chinese fan palm with 
singular fibers along the trunk and the edges of the leaves. This is 
grown outdoors wherever palms can be grown in the United States, 
as far north as Oregon along the western coast, and as far north as 
Georgia along the eastern. It is the most imitated in artificial palms 
of any species. 
Washingtonia filifera, var. robusta is a North American palm, especially 
characteristic of California. 
Yucca guatemaliensis, blooms magnificently during May and June, 
but the plant is so high that the flower spikes, several feet in length, 
often are unnoticed by visitors. 
