Wettinia aequalis

Wettinia (weh-tin-EE-ah) aequalis (eh-KWAHL-iss)
Chaco, Argentina. Photo by José A. Grassia (Pindo).
Scientific Classification
Genus: Wettinia (weh-tin-EE-ah) Species: aequalis (eh-KWAHL-iss)
Synonyms
None set.
Native Continent
America
Morphology
Habit: Solitary Leaf type: Pinnate
Culture
Survivability index
Common names
None.

Habitat and Distribution

Panama, W Colombia, and W Ecuador, at elevations below 800 m. In Ecuador it

Mallorca, Balears Islands, Spain. Photo by Duathor.

often replaces Wettinia quinaria as a dominant subcanopy species in areas with a slightly seasonal climate.

Description

Subcanopy palm. Stem solitary, 4-10 m tall and 7-13 cm in diameter, distally with persisting, dead sheaths. Leaves 3-5 m long; pinnae 20-35 on each side, entire, spreading horizontally in one plane, glabrous on both sides, the central ones 70-110 cm long and 7-16 cm wide. Inflorescences 3-11 per node; peduncle 15-35 cm long; rachis 2-20 cm long; branches 2-10; male inflorescence branches 15-25 cm long; male inflorescence branches to 115 cm long in fruit, strongly pendulous. Male flowers 7-8 mm long, with 5-9 stamens. Female flowers dispersed along the branches, 10-11 mm long. Fruit yellow at maturity, 2-3 cm long and 1.5-2 cm in diameter. (Borchsenius F., Borgtoft-Pedersen H. and Baslev H. 1998. Manual to the Palms of Ecuador. AAU Reports 37. Department of Systematic Botany, University of Aarhus, Denmark in collaboration with Pontificia Universidad Catalica del Ecuador)/Palmweb. Editing by edric.

Culture

Cold Hardiness Zone: 10b

Comments and Curiosities

Wettinia are lovely South American palms with beautiful dark green foliage. Wettinia aequalis, from Ecuador and Colombia, is a solitary species, 6 to 8 m tall, with stilt roots and a handsome crown of horizontally spreading, dark, glossy leaves. The attractive seeds are easy and fast to germinate, and the resultant young plants can make very unusual interior specimens. It is an excellent palm for the wet tropics or subtropics. (RPS.com)

• IMAGE GALLERY
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  Chaco, Argentina. Photo by José A. Grassia (Pindo).

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  Mallorca, Balears Islands, Spain. Photo by Duathor.

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  Mallorca, Balears Islands, Spain. Photo by Duathor.

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  Las Marias, PR. Photo by Cindy Adair.

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  Las Marias, PR. Photo by Cindy Adair.

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  Photo by Philippe Alvarez.

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  Photo by Philippe Alvarez.

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  Photo-Rare Palm Seeds.com

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  Photo-Rare Palm Seeds.com

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  Photo by Alex.

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  Photo by Alex.

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  Photo by Alex.

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External Links

• Glossary of Palm Terms
• MODERN BOTANICAL LATIN
• "Just To Be Clear"

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).

Borchsenius F., Borgtoft-Pedersen H. and Baslev H. 1998. Manual to the Palms of Ecuador. AAU Reports 37. Department of Systematic Botany, University of Aarhus, Denmark in collaboration with Pontificia Universidad Catalica del Ecuador

Many Special Thanks to Ed Vaile for his long hours of tireless editing and numerous contributions.

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