Copernicia hospita
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Copernicia hospita |
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Copernicia hospita, also known as Cuba wax palm , is a species of palm endemic to Cuba .
features
Adult trunks are 6 to 7.5 m high and 30 cm in diameter. The surface of older trunk parts is smooth. The leaf crown is around 5 m high and wide. The fan-like leaves are 1.5 to 2 m wide and circular to wedge-shaped. They are divided into many stiff segments that are about a third of the length of the leaf radius. The ends of the segments are slightly drooping. The leaf color can range from gray-green to blue-green to almost pure white or silver. Both surfaces are covered with a layer of wax. Small teeth sit on the edges of the segments. The petiole is short and extends slightly into the leaf blade, making the leaf costapalmatian. A hastula is clearly formed. The leaf crown is tightly packed, the leaves almost overlap.
The inflorescence is a 2 m long panicle that extends beyond the leaves. The flowers are small, brownish yellow and hermaphroditic. The fruits are 1.5 cm wide and black.
distribution
Copernicia hospita is endemic to Cuba and grows in savannahs and open forests. Numerous rodents and birds live in the dead leaves that remain on the trunk. The epithet hospita , which means host in Latin, could be derived from this.
A carnauba- like wax can be obtained from the leaves .
literature
- Robert Lee Riffle, Paul Craft: An Encyclopedia of Cultivated Palms. 4th edition, Timber Press, Portland 2007, ISBN 978-0-88192-558-6 , p. 313.
Individual evidence
- ↑ ED Kitzke & EA Wilder: The cuticle wax of the Cuban palm, Copernicia hospita. In: J. Am. Oil Chem. Soc. 38: 1961, pp. 699-700, doi : 10.1007 / BF02633059 .