Astrocaryum campestre
Astrocaryum (ahs-tro-kahr-EE-uhm) campestre (KAHM-pehs-treh) | |||||||
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Caetité - Bahia- Photo: Mauricio Caixeta. | |||||||
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Contents
Habitat and Distribution
Bolivia, Brazil North, Brazil Northeast, and Brazil West-Central Bolivia - (Santa Cruz), central Brazil (Goiás, Minas Gerais). Ecology: semi-arid vegetation. Open savannah and agricultural fields, usually in deep, sandy soils, at elevations up to 1,200 metres.Description
Solitary palm. short-leafed, semi-plumose. The short stem is subterranean (acaulescent), producing at its top a rosette of 3 - 6 arching leaves. The orange or yellowish-green, obovoid fruits are up to 35 mm long and 25 mm wide. Editing by edric.
Culture
Cold Hardiness Zone: 9b
Comments and Curiosities
Etymology: The specific epithet is from the Portuguese, 'campestre' - literally; 'country'
Uses: The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a food, and source of fibre, fibres from the leaves are used to make nets, and similar items. The fruit is edible. Leaves - cooked. The apical bud, often called a 'palm heart', is eaten as a vegetable. Eating this bud leads to the death of the plant because it is unable to produce side-shoots, being a solitary palm.
The plant often persists as a weed in agricultural fields.
External Links
- Glossary of Palm Terms
- MODERN BOTANICAL LATIN
- "Just To Be Clear"
- http://www.plantarum.org.br/noticia/expedicoes/expedicao-ao-grande-sertao-veredas-117/#[]/0/
References
Phonetic spelling of Latin names by edric.
Special thanks to Geoff Stein, (Palmbob) for his hundreds of photos.
Special thanks to Palmweb.org, Dr. John Dransfield, Dr. Bill Baker & team, for their volumes of information and photos.
Glossary of Palm Terms; Based on the glossary in Dransfield, J., N.W. Uhl, C.B. Asmussen-Lange, W.J. Baker, M.M. Harley & C.E. Lewis. 2008. Genera Palmarum - Evolution and Classification of the Palms. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. All images copyright of the artists and photographers (see images for credits).
Many Special Thanks to Ed Vaile for his long hours of tireless editing and numerous contributions.