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Seed identification: what do I have?

dsws
10 years ago

As I said in my previous post, I just got back from Florida with some palm seeds gathered from the ground under fruiting trees or picked directly from the trees. This was in southwest Florida (Fort Myers and Palmetto).

One tree was at the pool of the motel in Fort Myers. I didn't get back down there to photograph it. It's just off the left side of this picture, but I think it's the same kind as the ones shown.
http://www.tnetnoc.com/hotelphotos/929/322929/2631759-MainStay-Suites-Fort-Myers-Pool-1-DEF.jpg

In case the picture isn't showing up, it's a small tree with pinnate fronds.

Here's the seed after the fibrous fruit is stripped away.

Comments (16)

  • dsws
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Here's the intact fruit.

  • dsws
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Next tree is in a parking lot. It's a medium-sized tree with pinnate fronds. Here's a picture of the fruit.

  • dsws
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Here's tree #2, the whole tree. Let's see if it's right-side-up this time.

  • dsws
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Yay, it's right-side-up. I have a closer view of just the crown of tree #2, but that pic looks good enough. On to tree #3, a medium-sized tree with palmate fronds. Here are the seeds (and some intact fruit).

  • dsws
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    And tree #3, the whole tree.

  • statenislandpalm7a
    10 years ago

    #3 sabal palmetto

  • dsws
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    That's what I was guessing, for that one.

    For #1, I've found an image of similar-looking fruit labeled as oil palm, Elaeis guineensis. But other images of oil-palm fruit have a much thicker flesh.

  • rchawk3
    10 years ago

    Palm #1 is a Christmas Palm (Adonidia merrillii)

    Palm #2 is a Queen Palm (Syagrus romanzoffiana)

    Palm #3 is a Sabal Palm (Sabal Palmetto)

    All three are pretty easy to grow from seed, especially the queen. If you use the baggie method your biggest problem is mold. Make sure you sterilize the media (moss or soil) in the microwave first. Also soak the seeds in some fungicide before putting them in the bag.

  • dsws
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Thank you.

    What's a good fungicide for this? Peroxide? Bleach? Tea tree oil? Garlic? Cinnamon? 1% clotrimazole ointment?

  • tropicbreezent
    10 years ago

    I agree with the 3 IDs, 1 - Adonidia merrillii, 2 - Syagrus romanzoffiana, 3 - Sabal Palmetto.

    I use sphagnum moss in bags with palm seeds and don't have problems with fungus/mould. And that's even with waiting a year for germination. Some palms are very slow to germinate, although I've found the Adonidia to be fairly fast, haven't tried the other 2.

  • dsws
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    It looks as though two of my Christmas palm seeds are already starting to sprout during the soak.

  • dsws
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    I've put some of my seeds in baggies of sphagnum, without baking it, and left others to be put in baked sphagnum. Of the ones put in baggies, I soaked some in 50% bleach for 20 minutes, and put others in the bags without bleaching them. I may kill some this way, but I have way more seeds than I would have room for palm trees as houseplants.

  • patbatzu
    10 years ago

    3rd pick is 100% queen palm 5th pic appears to be a sabal palmetto

  • dsws
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    A couple sabal palmetto and a couple Christmas palm are coming up. I planted one palmetto in a pot of the generic peat-based potting medium I had on hand. I plan to go buy something better to pot the others in tomorrow.

  • Park_Bio
    10 years ago

    I agree with the identification of the third palm as Florida's state "tree," a cabbage palm (Sabal palmetto), and I'll defer on the identification of your second species (queen palm?). But, I suggest you may want to consider another possibility, solitaire palm (Ptychosperma elegans) for the identity of your red-fruited first species... it's very commonly planted (even becoming a bit of an invasive weed) in south Florida.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council Lists of Invasive Plants

  • dsws
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    I wish I had photographed tree #1. The images I'm finding for solitaire palm seem less of a match than what I saw for Christmas palm. Still no sign of sprouting from the queen palm. Here's what stage the seedlings are at now.