Palms For California

Pronunciation: sah-ta-KEN-tee-uh lee-oo-key-oo-EN-siss

Common Name: Satake Palm

Satakentia liukiuensis is known among palm enthusiasts around the world as one of the most beautiful of all the palms, with a unique chocolate-colored crownshaft, perfectly and closely ringed trunk and deep green, long, perfectly arching, flat pinnate leaves with long, closely spaced leaflets. This Japanese native is surprisingly cold hardy considering its closest relatives are Neoveitchia (super tropical palm) and Carpoxylon (fairly tropical as well)… but saying that, it is still a very marginal palm in California with very few having success in growing up to trunking size (usually only in the perfect USDA 10b microclimates).

Appearance and Biology Habit: solitary with a crown of 12-20 feather leaves Height: 6' estimate Trunk: single; 8" thick; closely and evenly ringed; newest rings have reddish coloration Crownshaft: 18" tall; dark green to chocolatey brown (newly sheathed leaves reveal a nearly reddish-brown crownshaft); tapering only slightly from width of trunk to slightly narrower below crown of leaves Spread: 10'-14' Leaf Description: pinnate; flat; long, closely spaced leaflets subtly pendant; 6'-8' long (8'-10' in the tropics); deep green to bright green Petiole/Leaf bases: short (4"-6"); unarmed Reproduction: monoecious Inflorescence: upright to horizontal; below crownshaft; 1' long; highly branched; often multiple inflorescences at a time Fruit: oblong; 1/2"; black when mature

Horticultural Characteristics Minimum Temp: 32F Drought Tolerance: poor Dry Heat Tolerance: poor Wind Tolerance: moderate to poor Salt Tolerance: unknown Growth Rate: slow Soil Preference: moist and well draining Light Requirement: partial to full sun Human Hazards: none Disease or Horticultural Problems: other than marked cold sensitivity, none yet Transplants?: unknown Indoor?: unknown Availability: very rare