Often, the appearance of palm plants can be seen on the seashore of popular resorts or as decorative elements in the interior of a home. At the same time, the decorative representatives of this family have no less exotic appearance than their relatives growing in the natural environment. In this article we will consider what a palm tree is and what types of this plant exist.
General description of the species
Palm trees are one of the oldest plant species. Initially, the traditional breeding method for them was seed. As a rule, in the natural environment, these plants are able to grow up to 10 meters. An exception is considered to be a palm tree, which is a recognized symbol of Colombia. The name of the palm is Wax. She is able to grow up to 50 meters in height.
The name of this species of plants comes from the Latin palma, which literally translates as “hand” or “palm”. It was not chosen randomly, since the foliage of a tree resembles a human brush in its shape.
What is a palm tree, and what are its distinctive features
Some types of decorative palm trees do well without intense light and can grow in the shade. Such plants are great for building exotic corners in the interior of the house, landscaping loggias and hallways. The type of palm is very diverse. Today, science knows more than 2800 varieties of this plant. The main distinguishing feature of this culture is the unique arrangement of leaves. Unlike other species, palm leaves are located at the very top. But in nature there are also those whose leaf plates come from the very roots.
In addition, decorative palm trees intended for growing at home are divided into several types. This is due to differences in the structure of leaves and trunk. They are divided as follows:
- Reed - to this species, experts include the Hamedorei and Rapus. A distinctive feature of these plants is their thin and rather high trunk, which looks very similar to the stem of a young reed.
- Cirrus leaves are the type of palm that has gained the most popularity among gardeners. It includes the elegant Hamedorea, Forester, Gomuti, Rafia. In addition, the species includes a very popular date palm, a tree that almost every grower knows. This type of palm trees is distinguished by arcuately bent narrow leaf plates, the growth of which can occur both upward and at right angles.
- Fan-shaped. What is a palm tree fan is known to many, because it is this particular type that is often used to decorate the halls of office buildings, hotels and restaurants. This variety includes Chameroops, Rapis and Washington. In this species, the trunk is divided into several segments extending from the center and acquiring the appearance of a round fan. Such palms have thorns on the cuttings and grow to quite large sizes.
- Saga. This type is a false palm, but has the appearance of the real. For decoration, only one type is grown - Cygnus turned away. The plant has a low cone-shaped stalk, from which long cirrus leaf leaves extend.
Main features of care and cultivation
The most important parameter when growing palm trees is air humidity and room lighting. This is due to the fact that the plant in the natural environment grows exclusively in a humid tropical climate in conditions of abundant amounts of light. Unfortunately, this culture is quite difficult to grow in rooms with central heating. The air in them is often dry, and this can have a strong negative effect on the palm tree and even lead to death. Therefore, before you start breeding, you need to study the features of palm care well.
Humidity and watering
The main principle of care is regular irrigation of palm leaves. This procedure is no less important than watering. It is noteworthy that the palm tree is able to survive for a rather long time without proper watering, but it definitely will not tolerate dry air and die.
In the summer, this crop requires watering twice a week. It should be made using warm water. In winter, when the room is heated, spraying should be carried out daily. It should be noted that it is best to irrigate a palm tree with distilled water, since running water from the tap has chlorine impurities that will damage the leaves and leave whitish traces on them.
Leaf plates are sprayed both from the surface and from the inside. A palm tree needs moderate watering so that the soil is always slightly moist. During the vegetative period, the plant needs more intensive watering, which should be carried out on a daily basis. In the winter months, less water is required for the palm tree, so it is watered no more than three times a week. It is noteworthy that for irrigation, as well as for spraying, you can not use tap water, but only distilled.
Necessary temperature and room features
The palm tree is a representative of the tropical fauna, and therefore, in room growing conditions, it also requires heat. The optimal conditions for such species as, for example, Chameroops, Trachicarpus, Washington will be a temperature of 15 degrees. Absolutely all types of this culture do not like drafts, and the root system is vulnerable to cold, therefore it is not recommended to place a container with a plant on a cold floor or in an airtight window sill. An ideal option would be the corner of a warm, well-lit room.
