Contains 23 genera and 28 accepted taxa overall.
This family is completely databased for all specimens.
Characteristics
ARECACEAE
Monocot
-
Classification
ARECALES
ARECACEAE
Genera
| Genus | Common Name | Taxa Count | Herbarium Specimens | Photos |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Acoelorraphe | EVERGLADES PALM | 1 | ||
| Acrocomia | GRU-GRU PALM | 1 | ||
| Adonidia | CHRISTMAS PALM | 1 | ||
| Butia | BUTIA | 1 | ||
| Caryota | FISHTAIL PALM | 2 | ||
| Chamaedorea | BAMBOO PALM | 1 | ||
| Coccothrinax | SILVER PALM | 1 | ||
| Cocos | COCONUT PALM | 1 | ||
| Dypsis | ARECA PALM | 1 | ||
| Elaeis | OIL PALM | 1 | ||
| Leucothrinax | 1 | |||
| Livistona | LIVISTONA | 1 | ||
| Phoenix | DATE PALM | 1 | ||
| Pseudophoenix | CHERRY PALM | 1 | ||
| Ptychosperma | 2 | |||
| Rhapidophyllum | NEEDLE PALM | 1 | ||
| Roystonea | ROYAL PALM | 1 | ||
| Sabal | PALMETTO | 4 | ||
| Saribus | FOOTSTOOL PALM | 1 | ||
| Serenoa | SAW PALMETTO | 1 | ||
| Syagrus | SYAGRUS | 1 | ||
| Thrinax | THATCH PALM | 1 | ||
| Washingtonia | WASHINGTONIA | 1 |
[Family identification key]
1. (notes: Cespitose palms usually have new stems or sprouts continuously arising from the base of the plant. Solitary palms show no signs of new stems at the base; however small or slender solitary palms are frequently planted in tight clusters giving the illusion of being cespitose) Leaves palmately to costapalmately divided
2
1. Leaves pinnately to bipinnately divided
3
2. Petiole, trunk, leaf sheath, and/or leaf blade armed with spines or prickles (sometimes the prickles rare in Livistona chinensis)
2. Petiole, trunk, leaf sheath, and leaf blade unarmed (petiole generally smooth)
3. Plant with a green to glaucous crownshaft completely encircling or encircling ca. two-thirds or more of stem apex, formed from sheathing leaf bases
3. Plants without a green or glaucous crownshaft
4
4. Petiole or trunk armed with spines or prickles
4. Petiole or trunk unarmed, the petiole margin sometimes roughened
1. (Key A) Leaf sheath armed with long needle-like prickles, these appearing to arise from the trunk
1. Leaf sheath unarmed, the trunk appearing unarmed
2
2. Plant cespitose (rarely single-trunked) or stems branching
3
2. Plant with one stem (branching very rare)
5
3. Stems prostrate to ascending, branching; petiolar prickles <2 mm long; fruit cylindrical, ca. 1.5-2.5 cm long
3. Stems erect, caespitose; petiolar prickles 2-5 mm long; fruit globose, ca. 1 cm long
4
4. Plant monoecious, to 7 m tall; stem <15 cm wide, the persistent leaf bases loosely packed; inflorescence subequal to longer than the leaves
4. Plant often dioecious, to 4 m tall (rarely to 6 m); stem usually >15 cm wide, the persistent leaf base densely packed; inflorescence shorter than the leaves, usually not reaching the leaf blade (commonly cultivated, not naturalized in Florida)
5. Plant often dioecious; mature plants to 4(6) m tall; inflorescence compact, the rachis obscure
5. Plant monoecious; mature plants to 20 m tall; inflorescence elongate, the rachis apparent
6
6. Petiole split at the base; young leaves with filamentous threads; inflorescence subequal to longer than the leaves
6. Petiole not split at the base; young leaves lacking filamentous threads; inflorescence shorter than the leaves
7
7. Leaf blades generally held straight; inflorescences with 5 orders of branching, immediately 3-forking to 3 equal main axes; fruit orange-red to brownish blue, globose
7. Leaf blade tips of mature plants abruptly bent and drooping; inflorescence with 3 orders of branching; fruit glaucous blue to black, usually ellipsoidal
1. (Key B) Upper and lower surface of leaves strongly bluish or silvery
2
1. Upper surface of leaves mostly green, sometimes somewhat gray-green or blue-green, the lower surface green, glaucous, or silvery
3
2. Base of petiole auriculate with a sharp corner; plant relatively larger; leaf tips mostly blunt or bifid (commonly cultivated, not naturalized in Florida)
2. Base of petiole curved, without a sharp corner; plant relatively smaller; leaf tips mostly acute and pointed (commonly cultivated, not naturalized in Florida)
3. Plant cespitose or rhizomatous (commonly cultivated, not naturalized in Florida)
3. Plant with one stem
4
4. Leaves costapalmate; perianth 2-seriate
4. Leaves palmate; perianth 1-seriate
5
5. Petiole typically 30-80 cm long (not including sheathing petiole base), not split at the base; inflorescence 30-50 cm long; fruit red or purple to blackish purple
6
5. Petiole typically 60-170 cm long, split at the base; leaf blade glaucous or greenish below; inflorescence 60-150 cm long; fruit white
7
6. Petiole entire, smooth; leaf blade lustrous silvery below, somewhat lax; fruits purple to blackish purple
6. Petiole smoothish, rough-margined, to slightly tuberculate at the base; leaf blade green, often very stiff; fruits red; cultivated
7. Petiole base split at middle and with secondary splits along basal inner margin; hastula silky-pubescent adaxially; leaf blades glaucous below; segment apices stiff or occasionally lax; flowers and fruits sessile or pedicel inconspicuous; seeds perforate
7. Petiole base split at the middle only; hastula glabrous adaxially; leaf blades green or light green below; segment apices typically lax; flowers and fruits pedicellate (pedicel usually exceeding 1 mm); seeds not perforate
1. (Key C) Leaflets arising from several planes along a leaf, not in two distinct or neat rows
2
1. Leaf with two distinct, neat rows of leaflets on each side of the leaf
3
2. Leaf not like a bottlebrush; leaf slightly to moderately curved; leaflets long, often laxly drooping, generally gradually narrowed to an acute tip, without filamentous leaflets; petiole base glabrous; fruit smaller, red to purple
2. Leaf like a bottlebrush with condensed leaflets, often some basal leaflets drooping and filamentous; leaf strongly curved, especially near tip; leaflets short, mostly stiff, with an indefinite tip, appearing torn or split; petiole base pubescent; fruit larger, orange (commonly cultivated, not naturalized in Florida)
3. Crownshaft fused ca. half or less of its length, the margin gradually ascending and rounded towards the petiole; inflorescence axillary within leaves
3. Crownshaft fused most of its length, the margin more abruptly rounded to the petiole; inflorescence at base of crownshaft
4
4. Crownshaft not evenly cylindrical, abruptly thicker at the base; leaves often 6 or less
5
4. Crownshaft generally evenly cylindrical, not much thicker at base; leaves often more than 6
6
5. Trunk typically swollen, thicker than crownshaft; leaflets stiff (commonly cultivated, not naturalized in Florida)
5. Trunk gradually narrowed to crownshaft; leaflets mostly stiff but usually some lax (commonly cultivated, not naturalized in Florida)
6. Leaflets mostly ascending to erect (occasionally somewhat horizontal)
7
6. Leaflets mostly horizontal to drooping (in Carpentaria esp. older leaves, sometimes ascending on new leaves)
9
7. Plant cespitose
7. Plant with one stem
8
8. Leaves often with long slender, dangling leaflets near the base; crownshaft green, mostly smooth; trunk thicker; fruits larger
8. Leaves without slender, dangling leaflets; crownshaft somewhat glaucous and striate; trunk thinner; fruits smaller
9. Stems slender, often green for much of their length; inflorescence rachis of female plants bright orange
9. Stems thicker, mostly gray; inflorescence rachis green to gray, not orange
10
10. Leaf strongly arched, the tip pointing to the ground (occasionally cultivated, not naturalized in Florida)
10. Leaves mostly straight to gently arched
11
11. Leaves often with long slender, dangling leaflets near the base; inflorescence branches spreading; fruit large (commonly cultivated, not naturalized in Florida)
11. Leaves without slender, dangling leaflets; inflorescence branches descending to drooping; fruit small
1. (Key D) Stem armed with spines; petiole with spine-like prickles, also often on the rachis interspersed with the leaflets
1. Stem unarmed (except for prickles on the leaf); petiole with prickles, not on the rachis interspersed with the leaflets
2
2. Petiole armed with prickles, not grading into leaflets
2. Petiole armed with spine-like prickles, these grading into leaflets
3
3. Petiole margin often fibrous in some areas
3. Petiole margin not fibrous
1. (Key E) Leaves more than once pinnate
1. Leaves once pinnate
2
2. Leaves in whorls of 3 along stem forming 3 vertical rows (commonly cultivated, not naturalized in Florida)
2. Leaves not in whorls of 3, not forming 3 vertical rows
3
3. Leaflets arising from several planes along a leaf, not in two distinct or neat rows; fruit an orange berry
3. Leaf with two distinct, neat rows of leaflets, one on each side of the leaf; fruit large, a coconut