trachycarpus_wagnerianus
Trachycarpus Wagnerianus

(Miniature Chusan Palm)

Trachycarpus is a genus of eight solitary-trunked palmate leaved, mostly dioecious palms in northern India, Nepal, Myanmar, southern China and northern Thailand. The species hail from mountainous forests of considerable elevations and include some of the world’s cold hardiest palms. One species is acaulescent, the rest form slender aerial stems that are covered in their younger parts with petiole and leaf base remains and the fibre associated with them.  

The leaf crown and leaves are relatively small and compact, and the slender petioles are mostly unarmed; a few species having leaf stalks with only a few short, tiny teeth along their margins. The inflorescences grow from the leaf base in the crown and are congested but much branched, the flowering mostly yellow, bearing either male or female blossoms on separate trees, occasionally with bisexual flowers. The fruits are small, variously shaped with hard and rough exterior, and generally black when mature. In addition the floral details, the shape of their seeds differentiate the species. The genus name is derived from two Greek words meaning “rough” and “fruit.”

 

Trachycarpus Wagnerianus was discovered in cultivation in Japan. It has never been found in the wild. The trunk is 20cm thick and is covered in brown fibres and old leaf bases. The fan shape leaves are 40-60cm wide and medium green.  The fruit is bluish-black.

Maximum Height is 8metre with a spread of maximum 2m.

The soil can be alkaline or acid as long as is well drained regular fertilizing and watering keep this slow palm thriving. Nutrient problem is rare and insect pets or diseases are not a threat. It grows best with cool night temperatures.

When is young this Miniature Chusan Palm makes a picturesque focal point in an intimate surrounding or an excellent container plant for the patio. When is taller it develops a more compact crown and stiffer appearance, then it looks better planted in a grouping.

Minimum temperature required is -15 to -17oC

The epithet is a Latinized form of the surname Wagner and honours of a Hungarian horticulturist Janos Wagner (1870-1950) who was the first European to import the plants from Japan.