Bottle Palm




Scientific Name:Hyophorbe lagenicaulis
(L.H.Bailey) H.E.Moore

Synonyms:Mascarena lagenicaulis L. H. Bailey  

Systematic Position
Class: Dicotylodonae
Series:
Nudiflorae
Family: Arecaceae

Common Names
English:
Bottle Palm

Description: Bottle palm has a large swollen (sometimes bizarrely so) trunk. It is a myth that the trunk is a means by which the palm stores water. Bottle palms have only four to six leaves open at any time. The leaves of young palms have a red or orange tint, but a deep green is assumed at maturity. The flowers of the palm arise from under the crownshaft. the trunk of the Bottle palm swells from near the base and tapers further up. Its inflorescence branches in 4 orders, and its 2.5 cm fruits can be orange or black.

Habitat: Cultivated

Distribution: The bottle palm is naturally endemic to Round Island, off the coast of Mauritius

Uses:  Ornamental palm

Other: Critically Endangered (IUCN)