Sabal palmetto (Cabbage Palm)

Hardy, Sabal palmetto (Cabbage Palm) is an elegant evergreen palm with a single trunk and a full, round canopy of costapalmate (between pinnate and palmate), fan-shaped leaves that can reach 6 ft. in length (180 cm). Each gray-green leaf is divided into numerous thread-like leaf pieces. The uniform, gray trunk is mostly covered by the residuals of the old leaves petioles, which cross in a characteristic way. Branched inflorescences produced during the late spring months usually extend beyond the leaves and contain thousands of tiny, creamy-white, fragrant flowers. They give way to shiny, black fruits in late summer. Extremely salt and wind tolerant, Cabbage Palm is also hardy to 15°F (-9°C). Long-lived (up to 150 years), Cabbage Palm is widely cultivated for its ornamental characteristics and its rusticity. Sabal palmetto is the state tree of Florida and is displayed on the state flag of South Carolina, whose nickname is the ‘Palmetto State’. It is well known for its use as palm heart. The heart or the new leaf bud is cut from the tree and used in salads. A beautiful palm that can be used as a specimen, in groupings, along streets, and in groves. It grows happily in coastal sands.

• Grows with an upright habit up to 40-50 ft. tall (12-15 m) and 10-15 ft. wide (3-5 m). Grows 12 to 24 in. per year (30-60 cm).
• Easily grown in moist, well-drained soils in full sun. Drought tolerant once established.
• Keep an eye out for Ganoderma butt rot, Thielaviopsis trunk rot or Texas phoenix palm decline.
• Propagate by seed. The seeds germinate in 2-3 months.
• Native to Florida and coastal regions of North and South Carolina, Georgia, Bahamas and Cuba.