Howea forsteriana

From Gardenology.org - Plant Encyclopedia and Gardening wiki
(Redirected from Sentry palm)
Jump to: navigation, search
 Howea forsteriana subsp. var.  Kentia Palm, Sentry Palm, Paradise Palm, Thatch palm
File:Howea forsteriana Lord Howe Island.jpg
Habit: palm-cycad
Height: to
Width: to
40ft
Height: warning.png"" cannot be used as a page name in this wiki. to 40 ft
Width: warning.png"" cannot be used as a page name in this wiki. to warning.png"" cannot be used as a page name in this wiki.
Lifespan: perennial
Origin:
Poisonous:
Bloom:
Exposure: sun
Water:
Features: evergreen, foliage, houseplant
Hidden fields, interally pass variables to right place
Minimum Temp: °Fwarning.png"°F" is not a number.
USDA Zones: to
Sunset Zones:
Flower features:
Arecaceae > Howea forsteriana var. ,


If this plant info box on watering; zones; height; etc. is mostly empty you can click on the edit tab and fill in the blanks!


The Kentia palm or Thatch palm (Howea forsteriana) is endemic to Lord Howe Island. It is also widely grown on Norfolk Island. Its "fronds" or leaves grow up to 3 metres long.

The species is considered vulnerable by the World Conservation Union. It is cultivated on Lord Howe Island by collecting wild seeds and germinating them for export worldwide as an ornamental garden or house plant. The trade in the seeds and seedlings is tightly regulated.

The palm is an elegant plant, and is popular for growing indoors, requiring little light. Out of doors, it prefers a tropical region but will also grow in a cooler climate, and can tolerate temperatures down to -5 °C, but only for a few hours; normal temperatures should not go below 10°. It grows readily outside in areas such as southern Australia and northern New Zealand, where it is fairly common in private gardens or as a street tree. In the Northern Hemisphere, it can be grown as far north as SW England, and grows well in the south of Spain and the southernmost parts of the USA, and will bear flowers and fruit. The coasts of the southeastern Azores and Madeira offer similar climates to its original habitat. It is slow growing, but will eventually reach heights of 6 to 18 metres. Under natural conditions, it grows as a solitary tree. Germination of the seeds is erratic.

The closely related Belmore sentry palm (Howea belmoreana), also endemic on Lord Howe Island, is a smaller species to 7 metres tall, found mainly as an understorey plant in moist forests.


Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture

Howea forsteriana, Becc. (Kentia Forsteriana, F. Muell. Grisebdchia Forsteriana, H. Wendl. & Drude). Flat or Thatch-leaf Palm.


The above text is from the Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture. It may be out of date, but still contains valuable and interesting information which can be incorporated into the remainder of the article. Click on "Collapse" in the header to hide this text.


Cultivation

Propagation

Pests and diseases

Varieties

Gallery

References

External links

blog comments powered by Disqus
Personal tools
Bookmark and Share