Geonoma undata

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Figure 1. G. undata trunk detail.

Common Names:

The Red Crownshaft Palm

Distribution & Habitat:

Cloud forest in central and western South America

Description:

A very attractive, medium sized solitary palm, up to 7m tall with a slim, ringed trunk, cherry red to maroon crown shaft, and leaflets of varying widths.

General:

There is apparently a small population along the famous Inca Trail in southern Ecuador, which has been featured in many articles in palm society magazines. Palm collectors have high hopes for this palm in cool temperate areas.

Culture:

Prefers cool and moist conditions, with a rich soil and medium shade.

These pictures were taken in a cloud forest near Cali, Colombia on the Western Cordillera of the Andes. These start occurring at 1900m, but are most vigorous at 2100m, where it is constantly cold. It is a beautiful palm with a salmon coloured trunk and a candy red crown shaft. It needs cool moist weather to grow and has been grown successfully in northern California as well as parts of New Zealand.

Figure 2. G. undata

Contributed by:

Michael Calonge,
Collectors Seeds (Figure 1&2).

External Links:

Kew, PalmWeb, JSTOR, Trebrown

Google, GoogleImages, Flickr, PalmTalk