Difference between revisions of "Livistona rigida"

Latest revision as of 11:14, 18 August 2015

Pronunciation: lih-vih-STONE-uh RIJ-ih-duh

Common Name: Mataranka Palm

Livistona rigida has been lumped with Livistona mariae until recently 'released' by Dowe to its own species status. However, telling them apart is a real challenge. Like Livistona mariae, younger plants have a nice reddish hue to their foliage and petioles that sadly fades away with maturity. But adult palms have smaller leaves, more deeply costapalmate, leaflets are more rigid (less pendulous near tips) and there are some minor flower differences, too. It would be nice to have two confirmed adult palms of either species growing side by side.

Appearance and Biology

Habit: solitary with a crown of 20-30 fan leaves
Height: 40' estimate
Trunk: single; 10" thick; tan; closely ringed; some retained leaf bases near base of palm
Crownshaft: none
Spread: 15'-20'
Leaf Description: costapalmate; leaflets fairly stiff with only a bit of leaflet tip droop; young leaves may be red or green; leaves up to 10' long; blades about 3'-4' in diameter; dull to medium green in color
Petiole/Leaf bases: armed with prominent, very sharp black-tipped yellow teeth; un-split bases, about 7' long
Reproduction: 'functionally dioecious (but not anatomically such, necessarily)
Inflorescence: 6' long; arching and mostly unbranched; from within leaves
Fruit: spherical; 1/2" thick; black when ripe

Horticultural Characteristics

Minimum Temp: 25F
Drought Tolerance: good
Dry Heat Tolerance: good
Cool Tolerance: good
Wind Tolerance: good
Salt Tolerance: unknown
Growth Rate: slow to moderate with age
Soil Preference: adaptable
Light Requirement: full sun
Human Hazards: sharp petiolar teeth
Disease or Horticultural Problems: none
Transplants?: unknown
Indoor?: unknown
Availability: rare

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 '''''Livistona rigida''''' has been lumped with ''Livistona mariae'' until recently 'released' by Dowe to its own species status.  However, telling them apart is a real challenge.  Like ''Livistona mariae'', younger plants have a nice reddish hue to their foliage and petioles that sadly fades away with maturity.  But adult palms have smaller leaves, more deeply costapalmate, leaflets are more rigid (less pendulous near tips) and there are some minor flower differences, too.  It would be nice to have two confirmed adult palms of either species growing side by side.
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 File:Livistona rigida per H.jpg|Huntington gardens tree, near Pasadena, California

Difference between revisions of "Livistona rigida"

Geoff Stein - Author & Editor

Latest revision as of 11:14, 18 August 2015