How To Grow Bottle Palm Tree (Hyophorbe lagenicaulis)

*Bottle Palm (Hyophorbe lagenicaulis). Photo by Wiki Commons.*

The Bottle Palm Tree, scientific name Hyophorbe lagenicaulis, is one of the most desired palms in Florida. Many consider bottle palm to be a dwarf palm.

This palm is easy to grow and maintain. It got its name from bottle shaped trunk. It is great for indoors or small outside garden.

Quick Facts:

Scientific name:	Hyophorbe lagenicaulis
Common names:	Bottle Palm
Origin:	Native to Mascarene Islands, which are in the Indian Ocean just East of Madagascar.
Growth Rate:	Slow. Up to 15 ft tall and 10 -15 ft wide.
Cold Tolerance:	USDA Zones 10b (35 – 40 F) to 11 (above 40 F)
Light Req:	Full sun to partial shade
Water Req:	Moderate.
Soil Req:	Widely adaptable.
Fruit:	Black. Not edible.
Propagation:	Seed, germinating in 3-6 months

Bottle Palm Identifying Characteristics

This is a slow growing palm that can get up to 10 – 15 ft tall and 10 – 15 ft wide, but usually is much shorter around 10ft. Hyophorbe lagenicaulis has a single, trunk, about 2ft in diameter with ring scars and green crownshaft at the top.

The gray, self-cleaning trunk is bottle shaped, hence the name Bottle Palm.

The Bottle Palm has a small crown of 4-6 4 to 8 pinnate, or feather-like, leaves that can grow up to 10ft. It has 140 leaflets arranged in two upward pointing rows which grow to about 2ft long.

Bottle Palm Flowers and Fruits

The Bottle Palm produces beautiful white flowers that are held by 30 in. stalks coming from below the crownshaft. Flowers are monoecious, male and female flowers on the same inflorescence.

Flowers are followed by green black berry like fruits that turn black when ripe. Oval shaped fruit is around 1.5 inches long and contains a single seed inside.

How to Care For Bottle Palm

Bottle Palm is very easy to maintain. It is not cold hardy and will not tolerate frost. It can handle temperature down to 32F. It is great for USDA Zones 10b (35 – 40 F) to 11 (above 40 F).

This dwarf palm tree does well in full sun or partial shade. It can adapt to different kinds of soil but likes moist well drain soil. It’s not very drought tolerant.

Generally, this is a very healthy palm that occasionally can have potassium deficiency. Apply good quality palm fertilizer that has continuous release formula twice a year during growing season.