Needle Palm

Most cold hardy palm trees like needle palms are slow growing and are protected from cold weather damage by the insulation of the needle and fibers that cover the trunk of the Needle Palm Tree. The needle palm, Rhapidoephyllum histrix, has survived minus 10 degrees F at the Brooklyn Botanical Garden in New York for many years, unaffected by the snow and cold temperatures. Large needle palm trees can grow for hundreds of years in age, but are rarely found as a native palm tree in forests, because collectors have dug them for landscapes.

• The Needle Palm is native to the Southeastern United States, and is considered to be one of the most cold hardy palm trees growing in the United States. The Needle Palm plant grows best in sheltered wetlands, and alkaline sandy soils are best. The Needle Palm Trees are evergreen being cold hardy planted near pools, outdoor restaurants and seaside bars for that tropical look in northern states.

• The needle palm tree, produces long needle projections at the base of each palm leaf. This needle is stiff and ominous to man and beast and is responsible for the descriptive name: needle palm. Because the Needle Palm Tree grows in clumps, the mother palm is not frequently separated from the needle palm offsets, so that the palm cluster leaves offer a privacy screen guarding sunbathers from unwanted eyes, and the needles offer security from trespassers. Seeds are commonly produced which are scattered around the base of the needle palm tree, sprouting slowly to grow into small plants.

• One quality that the needle palm tree features is slow growth that produces waxy leaf coverings that protect the growing tissue from freezing temperatures. The leaves are two feet long and 4 feet wide, and the trunk is dangerously armed with white, sharp, 6 inch needles, easily being detached from the trunk, with the overall appearance like that of a porcupine. The Needle Fan Palm Tree is planted at golf courses and resorts along the Atlantic seacoast, where it shows great salt water tolerance and can be planted in clumps underneath other palm trees or shrubs.