Editing Areca vestiaria (section)

===Introduction: ===
''Areca vestiaria'', a clustering, shade-loving
ornamental palm is native to North Sulawesi, the northernmost
province of Sulawesi Island (formerly known as Celebes). This
palm also grows in the neighbouring Maluku Province
especially in the northern islands` In these regions, the
palm is known as 'pinang merah', or the red pinang. For the
Indonesians, 'pinang merah' is the common name for all palms
resembling ''Areca'' or ''Pinanga'' and whose
crown-shaft, petiole or fruits appear red, pink orange or
golden yellow. Even ''Cyrtostachys lakka'', the
sealing-wax palm, is 'pinang merah' for them. By whatever
name ''Areca vestiaria'' was known until recently, this
wild palm is one of the most beautiful ornamental pinnate
palms, comparable only to the sealing-wax palm in beauty. 

Dr John Dransfield, an Editor of '''Principes''',
(the Journal of International Palm Society), established that
''Areca langloisiana'', described by late Dr Harold
E. Moore Jr. (Founding-Editor of Principes), and
''Areca vestiaria'' are synonyms. This red pinanga was
known earlier by various names such as
''Areca langloisiana'', ''A. leptopeltate'',''A. heinrici'',
''A. paniculata'', ''Ptychosperma paniculatum'',
''P. vestiarius'', ''Mischophloeus paniculatus'',
''Pinanga sylvestris'' and ''Seaforthia vestiaria''.

The wide morphological variation noticed in the palm which ranges from
the profusely stilt-rooted condition to having no aerial root
at all, densely clustering to single-stemmed habit, colour of
leaf-sheath ranging from red, bright orange, light orange and
brown, and the variation in the colour of fruits which
changes as the fruit matures, all contributed to the
confusion of its name. Further, the bright orange colour of
crownshaft, spathe and mature fruits become less attractive
at lower altitudes. Thus, the palm appeared differently for
palmists who saw them in small numbers at only a single
location. 

We had the opportunity to admire
''Areca vestiara'' in its indigenous habitat in the many
volcanic mountains of North Sulawesi, especially in Gunung
Soputan and around Lake Tondano. Also we could examine clumps
at lower elevations where it looked less colourful. There is
confusion even in the local name of the species. Although
'pinang merah' (red pinang) is a more common name, it is also
known as 'pinang yaki' (monkey pinang). Perhaps monkeys,
especially the Sulawesi crested macaque, enjoys the ripe
fruits of pinang merah because of its sweet mesocarp and this
could have earned its popular name.
</div>
</div>

<div class="row">
<div class="small-0 large-9 columns">
The bright red prophyll and crown shaft make a striking contrast against the dark green leaves. The fruits and inflorescence rachillae take on an equally intense colouration at maturity, a situation which changes according to the altitude at which the palm grows - the higher the altitude, the more intense the colour. (T.A. Davis)

Ripe fruits, spathes and crownshaft of
''Areca vestiaria'' growing at altitudes between 600 and
1200m are very colourful. At lower elevations, as one can see
in front of homes along the mountain slopes and valleys, as
well as the clumps maintained at the Bogor Botanic Garden,
the colour is less spectacular. In the colour picture that
appears on page 159 of the book '''''Palms in Australia''''' by David
Jones, the leaf sheath of 'pinang merah' appears almost green.
So also the stilt roots do not appear colourful. The stem is
slender, tall and smooth displaying distinctive rings of
leaf-scars. Depending on the richness of the locality where
they grow, the number of shoots per clump varies from one to
twenty or even more. Very young shoots are less impressive.
The crownshaft/leafsheath is deep orange and attracts the
attention of people standing even at a far distance. Because
of this, locating clumps of 'pinang merah' in valleys and
slopes of volcanic hills is very easy even though proper
roads or trails to reach them in such hills are extremely
inadequate. As the mature leaf sheds and its auxiliary
inflorescence becomes visible, the large spathe which
envelopes the spadix is deep in its reddish orange hue. But
as the spathe opens, the tender peduncle, spikes and flowers
all appear cream-coloured. However, after fertilization, the
female flowers, including their perianth cap, first turn light
green and as they grow, turn dirty brown. As the fruits
mature and ripen, their colour changes to light brown, light
orange, deep orange and crimson red. Simultaneously, the
colour of the peduncle and spikes also changes in unison with
that of the fruits. A ripe infructescence bearing 25-300
fruits is extremely pretty, much more attractive than the
fruit bunches of ''Cyrtostachys lakka''. However, in
''C. lakka'', the crownshaft including the rachis up to
the tip of the pinnate leaf is deeply crimson, and more
impressive than those of ''Areca vestiaria''.

</div>
<div class="small-0 large-3 columns">
[[File:Areca_vestiaria.jpg|frame|Figure 2. ''Areca vestiaria'']]
</div>
</div>

<div class="row">
<div class="small-0 large-4 columns">
[[File:Areca_vestiaria1.jpg|frame|Figure 3. A spectacular crown shaft of ''A. vestiaria''.]]
</div>
<div class="small-0 large-8 columns">