Difference between revisions of "Phoenix canariensis"

Geoff Stein - Author & Editor
 
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'''''Phoenix canariensis''''' is one of the most massive of all the palms for southern California and also one of the most prized, as well as common.  Excellent landscape for parks, public gardens and avenues, but a a bit large for most private gardens.  Creates a very dense shade beneath which even grass can struggle to grow it's so dark. Despite producing huge volumes of colorful dates, they are fairly inedible, though squirrels love them.  One of the fastest growing of all palms in southern California
 
'''''Phoenix canariensis''''' is one of the most massive of all the palms for southern California and also one of the most prized, as well as common.  Excellent landscape for parks, public gardens and avenues, but a a bit large for most private gardens.  Creates a very dense shade beneath which even grass can struggle to grow it's so dark. Despite producing huge volumes of colorful dates, they are fairly inedible, though squirrels love them.  One of the fastest growing of all palms in southern California
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*'''Drought Tolerance''': good once established (can take up to 3 years)
 
*'''Drought Tolerance''': good once established (can take up to 3 years)
 
*'''Dry Heat Tolerance''': good
 
*'''Dry Heat Tolerance''': good
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*'''Wind Tolerance''': fair to good
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*'''Cool Tolerance''': excellent
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*'''Wind Tolerance''': fair to good (resents arid winds)
 
*'''Salt Tolerance''': moderate
 
*'''Salt Tolerance''': moderate
 
*'''Growth Rate''': fast to very fast with age
 
*'''Growth Rate''': fast to very fast with age
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*'''Availability''': extremely common
 
*'''Availability''': extremely common
 
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File:Phoenix ave 2 Bhs.JPG|avenue trees
 
File:Phoenix ave 2 Bhs.JPG|avenue trees

Latest revision as of 22:19, 17 August 2015

Pronunciation: FEE-nix kuh-nair-ee-EN-siss


Common Name: Canary Island Date Palm

Phoenix canariensis is one of the most massive of all the palms for southern California and also one of the most prized, as well as common. Excellent landscape for parks, public gardens and avenues, but a a bit large for most private gardens. Creates a very dense shade beneath which even grass can struggle to grow it's so dark. Despite producing huge volumes of colorful dates, they are fairly inedible, though squirrels love them. One of the fastest growing of all palms in southern California

Appearance and Biology
  • Habit: Solitary with a huge crown of up to 100 leaves
  • Height: 70'+
  • Trunk: single 3' in diameter; clean but covered with leaf scars (may retain a sparse petticoat of dead leaves if not pruned regularly, which most are); often top 3'-4' below crown of leaves the trunk is pruned less severely leaving a dense bulge of leaf bases giving one the vague impression of a pineapple; bottom 1'-4' of trunk is often covered with adventitious roots, particularly where planted in lawns with sprinklers
  • Crownshaft: none
  • Spread: 30'
  • Leaf Description: pinnate; long (15'-20') and arching; leaves have two barely offset planes of densely packed 1', stiff, induplicate leaflets, all ending in a sharp, but not too painfully sturdy, point; color of leaves a bright, deep, glossy green;
  • Petiole: almost non-existent unless one considers the base of the leaf armed with modified, sharp, spiny leaflets as part of the petiole (hard to tell then where the petiole ends and rachis begins); very sturdy (almost woody), curved underneath and flat on top
  • Reproduction: monoecious and very promiscuous (Phoenix interbreed freely in California due to their vast numbers and many hybrids are created all the time)
  • Inflorescence: 3'-4' slightly arching, orange and many-branched; arising from within leaf bases within crown- often a palm will have multiple levels of inflorescences in various stages of flowering or fruiting
  • Fruit: 3/4" green to yellow to orange or sometimes nearly red
  • Seed: 1/2" oblong brown
Horticultural Characteristics
  • Minimum Temp: 18F with some foliar damage (less with advancing age)
  • Drought Tolerance: good once established (can take up to 3 years)
  • Dry Heat Tolerance: good
  • Cool Tolerance: excellent
  • Wind Tolerance: fair to good (resents arid winds)
  • Salt Tolerance: moderate
  • Growth Rate: fast to very fast with age
  • Soil Preference: very adaptable to just about any soil type
  • Light Requirement: full sun
  • Human Hazards: extremely hazardous leaf bases with sharp, stiff spines up to 1' long that can penetrate a boot, at various angles (caution when trimming!)
  • Disease or Horticultural Problems: fusarium wilt a big problem with this species- only trim palms with clean loppers and saws (disinfect if trimming multiple palms); mineral deficiencies can be common in sandy or overused soils
  • Transplants?: fairly good transplant success even in large, mature palms- however, if trunk injured during move, can take palm up to 3 years to die (important when agreeing to guarantees under 3 years); palms with little or no trunk tend to set back if not handled extremely carefully, though
  • Indoor?: no a good choice for obvious reasons
  • Availability: extremely common


  • avenue trees

  • San Fernando Valley

  • San Fernando Valley

  • Los Angeles coastal

  • palms in the park

  • Pasadena area, California

  • San Fernando Valley, California

  • Los Angeles

  • Los Angeles arboretum

  • Los Angeles arboretum

  • crown

  • tall palm (about 70')

  • crown

  • transplanted palm central Florida

  • San Fernando Valley, California

  • trimmed trunk

  • leaves trimmed less close leaving a bit of petiole

  • trimmed trunk Disneyland

  • trunk base

  • leaves cut leaving some petiole

  • armed leaf bases

  • smoothly trimmed trunk

  • pruned like a 'pineapple'

  • overpruned tree

  • leaves tied up after recent transplant

  • Phoenix canariensis versus a hybrid plant (right)

  • Phoenix canariensis (left) versus Jubaea (right)

  • mineral deficiency look

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