Guadalupe Palm Tree – Brahea edulis

guadalupe palm5 Guadalupe Palm Tree Brahea edulis

The scientific name for the Guadalupe Palm is – Brahea edulis. Guadalupe Palm is native to Guadalupe Island off of the Western coast of Mexico. This palm is cold hardy down to 20F and can be grown in states like Georgia, Louisiana, Nevada, Oregon, South Carolina, Texas, and Washington.

guadalupe palm Guadalupe Palm Tree Brahea edulis Common Name: Guadalupe Palm
Scientific Name: Brahea edulis
Growth Rate: Moderate
Height: up to 30ft
Light Req: full sun to partial shade
Water Req: low
Cold Tolerance: down to 20F

Guadalupe Palm Description

Guadalupe Palm is a small fan palm growing to 10 m (30 feet) high with a highly fissured trunk 40 cm (1-1/2 feet) in diameter. It does not have a skirt of persistent dead leaves, or leaf petioles.

The large fan-shaped leaves are a shiny green and usually have an indentation along the midrib. Produces small black colored fruit with a taste resembling a date (25 to 35 mm across).

Growing Guadalupe Palm

It is a slow growing palm. Guadalupe Palm is hardy and can tolerate cold up to 20F. It requires little water. It likes full sun and well drained soil.

Guadalupe Palm Propagation.

Propagated by seeds.

It is recommended to sown as soon as it is ripe in a warm greenhouse at not less than 24°c. It usually takes 3 – 6 months at 25°c for germination. If you store seeds it will be very slow to germinate. Make sure to soak the seed for 24 hours in warm water prior to sowing. This may shorten the germination time.

Plants form a long tap-root some time before forming a shoot so it is best to sow 2 – 3 seeds per deep pot. Grow the seedlings on in the greenhouse for at least their first three winters.

It is best to plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts. For more details on propagation go to http://www.ibiblio.org/

~ Susan Brian