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| Category: Palm |
| Family: Arecaceae (Palmae) (Palms) |
| Origin: Argentina (South America) |
| Evergreen: Yes |
| Flower Color: White |
| Bloomtime: Summer |
| Height: 8-12 feet |
| Width: 8-12 feet |
| Exposure: Full Sun |
| Irrigation (H2O Info): Low Water Needs |
| Winter Hardiness: 10-15° F |
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Trithrinax campestris (Blue Needle Palm) An extremely slow growing compact medium sized palm that after 40 years may have several trunks reaching up to 12 feet tall and to nearly 20 feet in its natural habitat with trunks covered by persistent spiny leaf sheaths. The 3 foot long very stiff blue-gray rounded palmate leaves, held on rigid petioles, have light green undersides and the folded leaflets are tipped with a short sharp spine. At maturity this plant has much branched light yellow-white flowers in summer - a rarity with palms is that this genus has hermaphrodite flowers with separate whorls of male and female flowers within the flower structure. After flowering appear the 3/4 inch wide rounded yellow-brown fruit. Plant in full sun in a fairly well drained soil and irrigate only occasionally - this is a very drought tolerant palm and is also considered to be one of the most cold hardy palms that reportedly tolerates high winds and temperatures below 15°F (some claim as low as 2°F) and has thrived as in northern Europe and in the British Isles. This is a very decorative palm and tough palm for those with patience. Place well away from a pathway as the attractive rigid leaves do not look wicked but they are and they also entice one to touch. Blue Needle Palm grows naturally in arid central Uruguayan and northeastern Argentine savannas, dry river beds, ravines and canyons up to the peaks of the Sierras de Córdoba and Sierras de San Luis mountain ranges where it is found on well drained rocky soils. The name for the genus is a combination of the prefix 'tri' meaning "three", with Thrinax, a Caribbean palm genus. This name apparently came about because the German botanist Carl Friedrich Philipp von Martius, who coined the name when he described Trithrinax brasiliensis, thought the palmate leaves were somewhat divided three times. The specific epithet means "of the fields" in reference to some of its natural habitat. Another common name for this plant is Carandy Palm. We have a few older boxed specimen plants of this very special plant in the nursery and are also growing a young crop from seed that came off a mature plant at the Ruth Bancroft Garden.
This information about Trithrinax campestris displayed is based on research conducted in our horticultural library and from reliable online resources. We also will relate observations made about it as it grows in our nursery gardens and other gardens we have visited, as well how the crops have performed in containers in our nursery field. We will also incorporate comments that we receive from others and we welcome hearing from anyone with additional information, particularly if they can share any cultural information that would aid others in growing it.
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