Heterospathe trispatha

Heterospathe (heht-eh-roh-SPATH-eh) trispatha (TREE-spah-thah)
Image-Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew/Palmweb.
Scientific Classification
Genus: Heterospathe (heht-eh-roh-SPATH-eh) Species: trispatha (TREE-spah-thah)
Synonyms
None set.
Native Continent
Asia
Morphology
Habit: Solitary Leaf type: Pinnate
Culture
Survivability index
Common names
None.

Habitat and Distribution

Philippines. Luzon, Aurora Prov. In lowland dipterocarp forest; about 50 m. Endemic.

Image-Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew/Palmweb.

Description

Solitary, slender, undergrowth palm to 3 m tall. Stem about 5 cm in diam.; internodes to 2 cm long. Leaves pinnate, to 8 in crown, arching; young leaves reddish-brown; leaf including petiole to 1.5 m long; leaf sheaths not forming a well-defined crownshaft, each to 40 cm long, drying striate, the edges fibrous and marcescent; petiole about 35-46 x 0.8 cm, flattened adaxially, the edges sharply angled, convex abaxially and minutely puncticulate, mid-rachis triangular, bifacial adaxially, flattened abaxially and minutely puncticulate. Leaflets to 26 on each side of the rachis, unicostate, regularly arranged, spaced 3-4 cm apart, linear-elliptic, long acuminate to sigmoid or falcate near apex, midrib and secondary nerves prominently elevated, ramenta prominent along midrib on undersurface, the leaflets drying brittle; basal leaflets about 31 x 2 cm; middle leaflets about 35 x 3 cm; apical leaflets about 20 x 0.7 cm. Inflorescence infrafoliar, arching, to 45 cm long, branching to 2 orders; peduncle about 17 x 2 x 0.9 cm, covered with dense, dark brownish tomentose scales, the surface drying striate; prophyll woody, about 24 x 6 cm, lance-shaped, 2- keeled laterally, and splitting apically, the surface scaly, persistent; peduncular bracts 2, the first borne about 2-3 cm above the prophyll, about 33-40 x 3.5 cm, similar to the prophyll, second peduncular bract borne 4-5 cm above the first, about 33-36 x 3 cm, protruding through first peduncular bract or enclosed within it; first order branches to 9, up to 4 basal first order branches further branching, each about 30 x 0.4 cm, with 2-6 rachillae, distal branches as rachillae, arranged spirally along axis; rachilla terete, about 22-30 x 0.2-0.3 cm, covered with caducous, tomentose scales, drying striate; triads borne spirally along rachilla and subtended by low, lip-like bracts. Staminate flower oblong, 4 x 3 mm; sepals 3, broadly imbrictate, much shorter than the petals, about 2 x 1.75 mm, one often larger than the other two, sparsely ciliolate along the margin; petals 3, valvate, striate when dry, acute at tip, 4 x 2.5 mm; stamens 6; anthers dorsifixed, 2.5 mm long, filaments white, 2 mm long; pistillode conical, 2.5 x 1 mm, briefly trifid at apex. Pistillate flower ovoid-obtuse in bud, shorter than the staminate flower, about 3 x 2.5 mm; sepals 3, broadly imbricate, rounded, 2 x 2 mm; petals 3, imbricate at base with acute valvate tips, 2.5 x 2 mm; pistil ovoid, 2 x 1.3 mm, briefly trifid at apex; staminodes minute, tooth-like, borne at base of pistil. Infructescence with arching rachillae. Fruits spirally arranged in 3-4 lax series, bright green, ripening yellow then red, broadly ovoid, about 1.2 x 0.8 cm, stigmatic residue obliquely apical, epicarp drying granulose with sclerosomes. Seed oblong-ovoid, about 6.5 x 6 mm, rounded on both ends, hilum prominent; endosperm deeply ruminate. (E.S. Fernando, The genus Heterospathe (Palmae: Arecoideae) in the Philippines. 1990)/Palmweb. Editing by edric.

Within Heterospathe, this species is most unusual. For one, as the epithet suggests, the inflorescence bears three bracts-a prophyll and two peduncular bracts-rather than a prophyll and a single peduncular bract which is typical in the genus. Secondly, the inflorescences are infrafoliar (as in H. scitula) not only at anthesis but even while still completely enclosed in the bracts. However, despite the unusual features, details of the leaflet, flower, fruit, and seed indicate affinity with Heterospathe. H. trispatha may, thus, be considered as an aberrant member of the genus. (E.S. Fernando, The genus Heterospathe (Palmae: Arecoideae) in the Philippines. 1990)/Palmweb.

Culture

Cold Hardness Zone: 10b

Comments and Curiosities

The photos avaiilable, are of a clustering species, more research prevails. edric.