Oraniopsis appendiculata
Oraniopsis (ohr-rahn-ee-OP-sis) appendiculata (ap-pen-dih-koo-LAH-tah) | |||||||
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Photo-Photo-Plumtree Pocket Enterprises, Queensland, Queensland, Australia. Photo by Kristopher Kupsch. | |||||||
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Contents
Habitat and Distribution
Queensland, Australia. Oraniopsis appendiculata occurs in rain forests of mountain ranges between the upper Tully River area (15°40'S), northwards to the Big Tableland (17°50'S) about 25 km south of Cooktown with the most inland occurrence being on the Great Dividing Range, southwest of Atherton, some 75 km inland, above 1,100 m altitude. The species occurs mostly above 300 m up to ca. 1,500 m altitude, and also in narrow gorges and gullies at the foot of abruptly descending coastal ranges, but does not extend on to the broader coastal plains. Rainfall is mostly above 1,800 mm per annum, with frequent cloud mist compensating rainfall in the 1,800 mm regions. Soil types are mostly of granitic and metamorphic origin; the palm also occurs on shallow basaltic soils with impeded drainage. The palm is usually absent from deep, well-drained basalt soils. It occurs in the following rain forest types (Tracey and Webb 1975): Simple Microphyll Vine Fern Thicket, Simple Notophyll Vine Forest, Upland Mesophyll Vine Forest and Complex Mesophyll Vine Forest. Seeds begin to germinate after 200400 days, but some may continue to germinate 3-4 years after sowing. The palm is very slow growing and seems to stay in the rosette stage for at least 20-30 years. In dense rain forest rosettes may even be twice this age with erect leaves 3-8 m long. Unless growth rates accelerate markedly when a trunk is produced, tall stemmed individuals must be several hundred years old. (J. Dransfield. 1985)/Palmweb.Description
Trunk up to 20 m tall, 20-45 cm in diam. at breast height, gray, irregularly marked with leaf scars. Leaves about 8-15 in crown, up to about 6 m long; sheathing base cuplike, rather short about 20 cm wide at the base, tapering to about 15 cm wide, and then narrowing into the petiole; petiole up to about 65 cm long, up to about 7.0 x 6.0 em in section, the margins ± winged, about 12 cm deep, sharp, abaxially brown tomentose; rachis becoming adaxially ridged at about half its length; leaflets up to about 110 on each side of the rachis, the apical pair composed of 2-4 folds, the rest all singlefold, basal leaflets about 15-20 x 0.5-0.8 cm, mid-leaf leaflets to about 100 x 4.5 cm, apical pair up to about 43 x 4.5 cm, leaflets held at about 60°read more |
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from the rachis except near the tip where about 30°; adaxial surface dark green, abaxial surface mealy, grey-white, tinged brown, with numerous small, dark brown' scales. Inflorescences 80-120 cm long; peduncle up to about 75 cm long, up to about 4 x 2 cm in crosssection, strongly flattened and winged at the base; prophyll borne near the base of the peduncle, about 25 x 6 cm, abaxially open to the base, adaxially splitting irregularly; peduncular bract 1 inserted 6-13.5 cm above the base, up to about 60 cm long, split abaxially, opening out somewhat, about 10 cm wide at widest point, strongly keeled; peduncular bract 2 inserted about 20-26 cm above the base, 60-135 x 812 cm; peduncular bract 3 inserted about 25-50 cm above the base, slightly smaller than bract 2; peduncular bract 4, where present, inserted up to 70 cm above the base, either similar to bract 3, up to 87 cm long or dissimilar, triangular, membranous, about 5 cm long, incompletely sheathing with long decurrent margins; peduncular bract 5, where present, inserted up to 70 cm from the base, membranous, subulate, about 6 cm long; rachis about 3545 cm long; rachis bracts triangular, membranous, easily disintegrating, the basal to 4 x 1 cm, the distal very small and inconspicuous; first-order branches about 70 in staminate, 30-40 in pistillate inflorescence, spirally arranged; rachillae very numerous, staminate about 3-5 x 0.15 cm, pistillate about 4-10 x 0.2 cm. Staminate flowers cream-colored, borne on pedicels about 1.2 x 1.2 mm; calyx about 1 mm high with lobes to 0.5 mm; petals about 6 x 2 mm; filaments about 3-3.5 mm long, about 1 mm in diam. at the base, anthers about 5 x 1 mm; pistillode about 1 mm high, sometimes longer. Pistillate flower similar to staminate; pedicel about 2 x 2 mm; calyx about 1 mm high with lobes to 0.5 mm; petals 5 x 2.2 mm; filaments of staminodes 1.5 x 1 mm, empty anthers about 3 x 0.8 mm; ovary strongly 3-lobed, about 2 x 3.5 mm, the stigmas about 0.8 x 0.3 mm, mature fruit 2.7-3.4-2.3 x 2.4-2.9 cm borne on pedicels 3 x 3-4 mm; epicarp bright yellow; mesocarp about 2.7-3.0 mm thick, the outer about 1.7 mm wide layer semiclear, the inner layer white pulpy; seed globose, about 2.2 cm in diam., the integument black, about 0.5 mm thick; endosperm with a small central hollow about 2 mm wide. (J. Dransfield. 1985)/Palmweb. Editing by edric.
The species occurs mostly above 300 m up to about 1,500 m altitude, and also in narrow gorges and gullies at the foot of abruptly descending coastal ranges, but does not extend on to the broader coastal plains. Rainfall is mostly above 1,800 mm per annum, with frequent cloud mist compensating rainfall in the 1,800 mm regions. Soil types are mostly of granitic and metamorphic origin; the palm also occurs on shallow basaltic soils with impeded drainage. The palm is usually absent from deep, well-drained basalt soils. It occurs in the following rain forest types (Tracey and Webb 1975): Simple Microphyll Vine Fern Thicket, Simple Notophyll Vine Forest, Upland Mesophyll Vine Forest and Complex Mesophyll Vine Forest. Seeds begin to germinate after 200-400 days, but some may continue to germinate 3-4 years after sowing. The palm is very slow growing and seems to stay in the rosette stage for at least 20-30 years. In dense rain forest rosettes may even be twice this age with erect leaves 3-8 m long. Unless growth rates accelerate markedly when a trunk is produced, tall stemmed individuals must be several hundred years old. (J. Dransfield. 1985)/Palmweb. |
Culture
Warm, sheltered and moist. Likes a rich, well drained, loamy soil, with high humidity. Unfortunately this palm is painfully slow growing which has severely hampered its take up as a garden plant. Can take light frost. Cold Hardiness Zone: 9b
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An extremely slow growing, shade tolerant Ceroxyloid palm indigenous to north Queensland's rainforests. It was formerly considered to be a species of Orania, although it is now recognised that the two genera are in different subfamilies of the Arecaceae, Orania being an Arecoid genus while Oraniopsis is a member of subfamily Ceroxyloideae. Morphologically it bears close similarity to its close relatives the gigantic species of Ceroxylon that grow in the tropical Andes, yet in terms of speed of growth and habit, the two could hardly be more different. While the Ceroxylons grow at great speed to dizzying heights with their crowns way up in the open air above the short montane forest, Oraniopsis can stay as a stemless rosette for sixty years before beginning trunk growth, and it rarely penetrates the forest canopy at any stage in its long life. It is believed the plants live for hundreds, possibly thousands of years. The leaves of young plants are normally 4 to 8 metres long, so it is a massive palm. They are dark green on the upper surface, and the lower surface bears an indumentum which is bronze in young plants and silver-white in mature plants like these. It grows in cool, very wet high altitude rainforest on the ranges and plateaux of northeast Queenland, within the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area. It can be found dispersed in the rainforest understorey on gentle to moderate slopes, or as groves in waterlogged alluvial deposits on the banks of streams, in valley bottoms, as here. Very occasionally, plants are found on streamsides among granite boulders in Eucalyptus savanna immediately downstream from highland rainforest, where seeds have been washed downstream and germinated, and been protected from bushfires by the boulders and the water, but they don't thrive in that environment. Athough seed production is fairly abundant, germination and early growth is so slow that it is not genuinely economic to raise commercially as a horticultural subject, and in any case, the plants need constant moisture and shade to survive, so it is not seen as a garden palm. (tanetahi) |
Comments and Curiosities
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This is a monotypic genus. This is a dioecious genus. Etymology: The genus name means "similar to Orania" Species name; The specific epithet; Latin, translates to "appendaged". Species Name Meaning: Comes from the Latin meaning 'appendages', referring to appendages on the petals, however, there are no appendages on the petals making the meaning of this name an error. "Very slow growing solitary palm from Australia. Has long upright leaves and evenly spaced long, thin leaflets with a bit of coppery color on the undersides. This is a relative of Ceroxylons in the new world and is equally needy of moisture. However, it is much more tolerant of hot, humid conditions and does fairly well in Hawaii, where most Ceroxylons do not. It is an excellent palm for southern California gardens that have some shade it which it can start out in... and needs to be planted in homes where the owners are young.... since it is so slow growing it will be decades before a trunk is formed and it looks like anything impressive. It is one of the slowest growing palms there are. But it takes frost well (to a degree) and is resistant somewhat to hot, dry winds. I have had several seedlings and they have done fine... just slow. Need a lot of water, too. Never seen a trunking palm... may not be too many outside of Australia." (Geoff Stein) "There is one of these at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco. Probably the coldest place in the USA during the summer, almost always covered with fog and rarley in the 70's. This palm can handle a wide range of climates though. Its beautiful, but as palmbob said, it takes forever." (Kyle Wicomb) A little known and rarely offered, elegant, pinnate palm from the rain and cloud forests of northeastern Australia, where it grows to altitudes of 1400 m (4590 ft.). Seeds are somewhat lengthy to sprout and the resulting seedlings are very slow growing, but, over time, they develop into stunning trees that vaguely resemble a dwarf coconut palm. One particularly stunning feature are the undersides of the leaves and leafstalks, which are densely covered with a golden-coppery layer. Oraniopsis appreciates cool, humid conditions and can tolerate light frosts. Seeds should not be germinated with too much heat and seedlings prefer quite deep shade, good drainage and lots of humidity. The palm does well in all subtropical/warm temperate areas that do not show extremes of heat or cold and it will also be happy in any cool tropical climate. The closest relatives of this unusual Australian palm are the Andean Wax Palms, Ceroxylon, Juania from the Juan-Fernández Islands, and the genus Ravenea from Madagascar, thus providing further substance to the theory that all the world's continents were once united in one large landmass, Pangaea. (RPS.com) |
External Links
- Glossary of Palm Terms
- MODERN BOTANICAL LATIN
- "Just To Be Clear"
- Click on Arecaceae, for list of photos
- http://keys.trin.org.au/key-server/data/0e0f0504-0103-430d-8004-060d07080d04/media/Html/taxon/Oraniopsis_appendiculata.htm
- Australian Palms, By John Leslie Dowe
- http://media.e-taxonomy.eu/palmae/protologe/palm_tc_141976_P.pdf
References
Phonetic spelling of Latin names by edric.
Special thanks to Geoff Stein, (Palmbob) for his hundreds of photos.
Special thanks to Palmweb.org, Dr. John Dransfield, Dr. Bill Baker & team, for their volumes of information and photos.
Glossary of Palm Terms; Based on the glossary in Dransfield, J., N.W. Uhl, C.B. Asmussen-Lange, W.J. Baker, M.M. Harley & C.E. Lewis. 2008. Genera Palmarum - Evolution and Classification of the Palms. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. All images copyright of the artists and photographers (see images for credits).
J. Dransfield, Oraniopsis appendiculata, a Previously Misunderstood Queensland Palm. 1985. 1985. Oraniopsis appendiculata, a Previously Misunderstood Queensland Palm. Principes 29:56-63.
Many Special Thanks to Ed Vaile for his long hours of tireless editing and numerous contributions.