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Phoenix Palm Hybrids

Robert Pittman  February 6 2010 08:12:14 PM
Phoenix palms are among the most popular varieties of palms in landscapes worldwide.  Phoenix palms are either male or female and must be polinated by another Phoenix Palm.  It is for this reason that so many hybrids exist.  Seeds that are collected from palms outside of a varieties origin are much more likely to be hybridized.  In order to understand the characteristics of the hybrid Phoenix Palms it is necessary to understand the characteristics of the potential parent plants.  Palms included in the Phoenix family are:

Phoenix roebelenii, commonly known as the Pigmy Date Palm
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The Phoenix roebelenii is a single trunk palm.  Multi trunk Roebelenii's are the result of multiple plants being grown together from an early age.  The Pygmy Date palm is in many ways the perfect miniature palm tree, complete with a slim trunk and beautiful feathery leaves. The Pigmy Date Palm is more sensitive to cold than many of the Phoenix Palms and does not like frost.

Phoenix reclinata. commonly known as the Senegal Date Palm
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Phoenix reclinata or the Senegal Date Palm produces a large cluster of tall, slender trunks and a dense crown of elegantly arching leaves. The Reclinata is a very robust plant and will succeed in tropical to warm temperate climates and withstand moderate frosts.

Phoenix sylvestris, Commonly known as the Sylvester Palm, India Date Palm or the Wild Date Palm
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Phoenix sylvestris or Sylvester Palm has a tall trunk and is much more slender than Phoenix canariensis. The Sylvester's very full and dense crown has elegantly recurving, greyish, plumose leaves. The Sylvester Palm is as easy to grow as any Phoenix Palm and will adapt to temperate as well as to tropical conditions.

Phoenix dactylifera, commonly known as the True Date Palm, Medjool, Zahidii or Deglet Noor
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Phoenix dactylifera variety Medjool is widely used as an ornamental. Taller, thinner, and with spikier, bluish leaves than its popular cousin from the Canary Islands, the Medjool Date Palm is a handsome tree. The Medjool Date Palm's adaptability to a wide range of climates, excellent resistance to drought, salt spray, brackish water, and various pests, and its general robustness make it the palm of choice for dry climates, temperate as well as tropical. Phoenix dactylifera tolerates salt water intrusion and cold better than all the other Date Palms.

Phoenix canariensis, commonly known as the Canary Island Date Palm or the Pineapple Palm
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Phoenix canariensis, Pineapple Palm, or the Canary Island Date Palm is one of the most popular landscape palms. The stout form of the Canary Island Date Palm is a familiar sight in most warm temperate and subtropical countries of the world. The Canary Island Date Palm with it's stately appaearance spans nearly thirty feet on mature specimens.



Hybrids are more strongly influenced by the female palm carrying the seeds.  If you are looking for a thicker single trunked Phoenix Hybrid, you may want to have the female Phoenix Palm to be the one with the thicker trunk.  The Canary Island Date Palm crossed with the Phoenix roebelenii will have different results depending on which palm carries the seeds.  The "Fluffy" is a beautiful example of this cross.  The Canary Island Date is the female and the male is the Pigmy Date Palm.
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The Sylvester Palm crossed with the Canary Island Date Palm can lead to a highly desirable cross known as the blue headed Canary.  The trunk of this cross is stouter than the sylvester.  The fronds are long and arching.  It is the blue color of the fronds that sets this hybrid appart.
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Reclinata Hybrids are highly sought after.  The cross with the Pigmy Date Palm has slender trunks with soft elegant fronds.  The cross with the Sylvester Date Palm has thick trunks and can have blue frantic fronds.  The cross with the Canary Island Date Palm has the thickest trunks of all the hybrids and massive green arching fronds.  Most the hybrids are less clumping than the Senegal Date Palm and this characteristic makes maintenance less of a project.
Image:Phoenix Palm Hybrids 


Phoenix Palm Seeds collectected from landscape specimens are likely to be hybrids unless the parent plant has the same variety in close proximity.  Phoenix Hybrids are crossing with other Phoenix Hybrids. This melting pot of Phoenix Palm Hybrids can make for some interesting results.