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The Florida 11 Paul Craft No, this is not a story about Miami mobsters or Boca Raton Ponzi scheme artists. Rather, this is a story about the notorious, wild, Florida 11 that are the native palms of Florida! They range from the Florida Keys all the way north into Georgia, and the Carolinas as well as westward into Louisiana, Alabama and Texas. These palms are a diverse lot of fan and feather leafed palms that can be solitary or clustering with either spines or self-cleaning crownshafts. Some are among the most cold hardy palms in the world. There are those that prefer wet swampy conditions while others are better suited to drier, well-drained, sandy or rocky soils. The Florida 11 are: Botanical Name Common Name Acoelorrhaphe wrightii paurotis or Everglades palm Coccothrinax argentata silver thatch palm Leucothrinax morrisii Key thatch palm Pseudophoenix sargentii buccaneer or cherry palm Rhapidophyllum hystrix needle palm Roystonea regia royal palm Sabal etonia scrub palmetto palm Sabal minor dwarf palmetto palm Sabal palmetto palmetto or cabbage palm Serenoa repens saw palmetto palm Thrinax radiata thatch palm

Some people may include a 12th species, Sabal miamensis. It is very closely related to Sabal etonia, with taxonomists now believing it a southern form of S. etonia. It had a limited natural habitat in Dade County that was completely destroyed by urbanization. There may or may not still be a few in cultivation but it is considered extinct in habitat. So, without further ado, here is a little information about Florida’s native palms.

Sabal palmetto in habitat

Acoelorrhaphe wrightii or paurotis palm in its Everglades habitat

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Acoelorrhaphe wrightii is also called the paurotis palm or Everglades palm. It is native to far southwest Florida, in the Florida Everglades, as well as parts of the Caribbean and Central America. It is a clustering fan palm that grows to 25 feet and occasionally taller in swampy conditions that experience occasional flooding. Being a water lover, its main requirement in any landscape is adequate regular watering. It has often been used wrongly in public plantings, particularly in roadway medians or on high overpasses with no irrigation. Those plants languish and eventually die in most cases. Of all the Florida natives, the paurotis palm is the most poorly understood and often passed over because people have seen it planted in situations doing poorly and believe it is not an attractive plant they would want to use. Given regular water, it makes an ideal specimen palm or screening plant in the landscape. Young suckers can be removed to give a more airy feeling and definition to the main stems, or left to grow to create a solid wall of foliage. Coccothrinax argentata, also called silver thatch palm, is found in the Florida Keys up into mainland Florida as far north as Palm Beach County. Its range extends into the Bahamas and depending on whose taxonomic treatment

one wants to go by (various splitting and lumping of species confusion), is found in other parts of the Caribbean as well as the coastal Cayes of Central America. The silver thatch palm is a solitary fan palm that grows to a height of 15 feet or more given enough time. This is a palm that grows in alkaline sands or rock. Its attractive dark green leaves with silver backsides make it standout in a landscape, especially when used in odd numbered groupings of staggered heights. It is a slow grower, often reaching maturity at less than 3 feet tall. Being so slow, it has not been used as much as other natives albeit is an ideal candidate for small landscapes tolerating drought very well and being extremely salt tolerant. Leucothrinax morrisii was previously known as Thrinax morrisii, but after DNA analysis, was found to be distinctive enough to gain its own unique monotypic genus. Commonly called the key thatch palm, its native habitat is in the middle to lower Florida Keys and can be

Acoelorrhaphe wrightii in a landscape

Coccothrinax argentata specimen

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found elsewhere in the Caribbean. Leucothrinax is a solitary fan palm that grows to 15 feet, but with extreme age can reach 30 feet. Home is in alkaline sands or rock. It occurs with Coccothrinax argentata on Big Pine Key in the Florida Keys where the two palms hybridize at times. With its medium green leaves that are light silver beneath, this is another palm that is ideal for small landscapes. It is also quite drought tolerant and handles salt wind well. Pseudophoenix sargentii is commonly known as the buccaneer or cherry palm. It is another Keys native and occurs elsewhere in the Caribbean and Mexico. The buccaneer palm is a solitary feather palm with a short crownshaft. It can grow to 25 feet with extreme age, but generally found much smaller at 12 to 15 feet in alkaline sands or rock. A form from Navassa Island, off the coast of Haiti, grows much faster than our native form and has a slightly thinner stem. Because of its faster growth, it is being grown more than the native form in South Florida nurseries. The native form was nearly wiped out in the Florida Keys due to

people transplanting them for their landscapes back in the early days. It grows slowly, but is a handsome addition to a landscape situation that is well drained. It is also very drought tolerant and will grow best in alkaline soils. Rhapidophyllum hystrix, commonly called needle palm, is endemic to a large area of the southeastern United States with its range extending from central Florida north to Georgia, and southern South Carolina as well as west to Alabama and Mississippi. Its common name refers to the spiny leaf-base fiber found around the base of the palm. It is a clustering, shrubby palm that is considered one of the most cold hardy palms in the world, tolerating occasional temperatures down to 0° Fahrenheit or lower albeit with leaf damage. Its native habitat is shady woodlands on slopes or wet areas near streams. Although considered a collector’s palm

in the US, the needle palm has gained popularity elsewhere in more temperate areas of the world

Leucothrinax morrisii growing in the

Florida Keys

Pseudophoenix sargentii in a Thailand landscape

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such as Europe because of its cold hardiness and beauty. It is a very slow grower that can become an upright shrub from 6 to 9 feet tall with time. Roystonea regia, or royal palm, was once reported to have grown as far north as Tampa, but has

since been known to be native only to southern mainland Florida. Its range was undoubtedly reduced by freezes in central Florida ages ago. It also grows in parts of the Caribbean, Central America and Mexico. The royal palm is a large crownshaft, feather palm that can grow to 90 feet, but is normally seen up to 50 or 60 feet. It mostly grows in swampy areas where it is occasionally flooded. At one time, the Florida form was named R. elata, but that name was lumped with R. regia as the differences between the two species were negligible. It is widely used in South Florida lining streets and shopping mall parking lots. Its best use is as a solitary specimen but when used in groupings, it reveals its true majesty. Roystonea regia will look its best and tend to maintain more green leaves with adequate regular watering. Sabal etonia, commonly known as scrub palmetto, is endemic to the areas known as the Central Florida Ridge and Atlantic Coastal Ridge of Florida. Large numbers can be found in the Ocala National Forest. It grows in pine and hardwood hammocks

Rhapidophyllum hystrix or needle palm

Spiny leaf fiber or ‘needles’ of

Rhapidophyllum hystrix

Spiny leaf base fiber or ‘needles’ of

Rhapidophyllum hystrix

Rhapidophyllum hystrix or commonly called needle palm

Roystonea regia grouping in a landscape

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or scrub forests on well drained sandy ridges. A solitary species, with an underground stem like S. minor, it can be easily distinguished from the latter by its strongly costapalmate leaves that are V shaped. Sabal minor has only a very small costa making the leaves appear broadly palmate. The inflorescence of S. minor extends straight up and out beyond the leaves, while in S. etonia it is short and hangs to the ground in amongst the foliage. This is the one palm species that bridges the gap between those from South Florida and the species prevalent in North Florida and

beyond. It does well in North Florida and may well be another palm that has long been treated as a southeastern native, but is only actually native to central and north central Florida. It would be used in landscapes much the same way as S. minor. Sabal minor is also called dwarf palmetto and is endemic to the southeastern United States including Florida north to North Carolina and west to Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas. It also is native to Nuevo León state of Mexico. This solitary fan palm grows similar in size to Sabal etonia but can be easily distinguished by its leaves, which are not deeply costapalmate, but rather appearing nearly palmate. It also has much longer flower bracts

extending way beyond the leaves. Generally the dwarf palmetto grows to only about 3 feet tall with a stem that remains underground. It has been known to hybridize with Sabal palmetto, with the hybrid developing a short stem. It is one of the most cold hardy palms in the world and has been known to tolerate temperatures to 0° Fahrenheit for very short periods albeit with major leaf damage. It is second to Rhapidophyllum hystrix for cold hardiness in American palms. Sabal minor grows in damp areas often as a woodland understory palm. It tolerates some drought quite well and in the landscape makes an excellent

Sabal etonia specimen in a landscape

Sabal minor or dwarf palmetto palm

A grouping of Sabal palmetto in a park setting

Sabal minor specimen

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understory palm in some shade or as a full sun subject. Sabal palmetto, or commonly known palmetto or cabbage palm, is a common sight throughout Florida. It is also found in Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Cuba and the Bahamas. Both

Florida and South Carolina have claimed the palmetto palm as their state tree. It is a solitary fan palm to 60 feet and occasionally taller with a stem covered in old leaf basis until older, when a rather rough grey stem is revealed. Epiphytes such as ferns, tillandsias and orchids find the stems ideal places to grow. They tend to be found in moist areas that are occasionally inundated by water, but do very well in drier conditions once adapted. The growing part of the palm, commonly called the palm heart or cabbage, can be eaten and has long been the focus of swamp cabbage festivals in Florida. Since

harvesting the palm heart kills the tree, there has not been as many harvested for this practice in recent years. The palmetto palm is used extensively in Florida landscapes, being a cheap native plant that developers can use for their projects. Few are actually grown in nurseries but rather mature specimens are plucked from their habitats and trucked to landscapes. While an excellent stand-alone specimen, it looks its best in odd numbered groupings of staggered heights. Many have been shipped overseas, where they do well in places such as the Mediterranean. Sabal palmetto prefers full sun, but can tolerate light shade very well. Serenoa repens, commonly called saw palmetto, is endemic to the southeastern United States where it grows from southern Florida north through Georgia into South Carolina and west through Alabama, Mississippi and into Louisiana. It can be found in coastal thickets as well as in the undergrowth of pine lands or hardwood hammocks. This fan palm clusters, forming stems that tend to recline along the ground with a few that actually grow upright. Stems can branch and one plant can cover a quite a sizable area given many years. Normally, Serenoa repens grows to about 6 or 8 feet, but can reach 10 to 12 feet if stems grow upright. Leaves are generally a medium to dark green, but one form that grows on the east coast of Florida near Hobe Sound has a striking silver color. This form is greatly sought after for landscapes so is the form most produced by nurseries. The fruit, or berries, are

Serenoa repens showing typical reclining stems

The silver form of Serenoa repens

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harvested and turned into a popular remedy for prostate problems. Saw palmetto gets its popular name from the tiny teeth or serrations along both sides of the leaf petioles. For those not careful in reaching into a plant, the result can be rather bloody as the teeth readily tear skin. Serenoa has become popular in southern Europe as well as Asia and seems quite at home in both places. It grows best in full sun but also tolerates light to medium shade very well. Thrinax radiata, or thatch palm, is another of the Florida Keys natives that extends up into southern Dade County. It is also common in the Greater Antilles. The thatch palm is a solitary fan palm that can grow to 20 feet and grows in alkaline sands or rock. It is being used more and more in landscapes in South Florida, particularly those that require a percentage of native plants. It is an ideal palm for smaller yards much in the same way as Coccothrinax argentata and Leucothrinax morrisii. All look fantastic in odd numbered groupings or as a solitary specimen with contrasting foliage behind or above them. Of the three species, T. radiata is being grown

and used the most. It is no longer just a collector’s palm. While the South Florida natives (Acoelorrhaphe wrightii, Coccothrinax argentata, Leucothrinax morrisii, Pseudophoenix sargentii, Roystonea regia and Thrinax radiata) will not tolerate the seasonal cold of North Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas, they are well worth using in the lower end of the state and have found more acceptance in recent years with nurseries making them available to the homeowner. With many landscaping requirements calling for a large percentage of native plants, these palms have found their way into more government plantings where people have learned about them and now ask for their use in their personal landscapes. Sabal palmetto and Serenoa repens grow widely throughout Florida and have also found general acceptance into landscapes. The cabbage palm is widely used in both commercial and homeowner landscapes while the saw palmetto is found mostly in commercial sites fulfilling a native plant requirement. While Rhapidophyllum hystrix, Sabal minor and Sabal etonia can tolerate South Florida, they are more easily found cultivated in Central and North Florida as well as elsewhere in the southeastern United States. There are fewer exotic palm species that can tolerate the colder temperatures of north Florida so these species find more acceptance for people wanting that tropical palmy look in colder latitudes.

Thrinax radiata specimens in the Florida Keys

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There is one of the Florida 11 that will fill just about any landscape need for yards both big and small. We often overlook the palms that inhabit our local areas for more exotic species. Natives tend to have simple requirements and their resistance to bugs and disease is high. Exotics palms can come with needs that require special nutrient additives or are prone to certain diseases or insect infestations. The natives have already adapted and can be just as attractive in landscapes. Don’t forget the Florida 11 when you decide to do some outdoor beautification.