Elephant foot (plant)
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Elephant foot ( Beaucarnea recurvata ) |
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| Beaucarnea recurvata | ||||||||||||
| Lem. |
The elephant foot ( Beaucarnea recurvata ) is a species of the genus Beaucarnea in the asparagus family (Asparagaceae). The specific epithet recurvata means "curved back". An English common name is "Ponytail Palm, Monja, Palma culona".
description
Beaucarnea recurvata grows as a succulent tree and reaches heights of up to 9 meters. The trunk, which is only moderately swollen at the base, is slender above it and only slightly branched. The caudex , which is almost spherical in the youth stage , later becomes 4 to 6 meters long and reaches a diameter of up to 50 centimeters and more at the base. The bark is smooth. The green, linear, slightly tapered and recurved leaves are thin, flat or slightly furrowed. They are 90 to 180 centimeters long and 15 to 20 millimeters wide.
The almost sessile, broadly egg-shaped to panicle inflorescence reaches a length of more than 1 meter. Its first-order branches are up to 30 centimeters long, the lower side branches up to 15 centimeters and the branches up to 5 centimeters long. The 3 to 4 millimeter long circular capsule fruits are sanded at their tips and bases.
Distribution and systematics
Beaucarnea recurvata is distributed in xerophyte regions in the state of Vera Cruz, Mexico . The species grows together with Neobuxbaumia scoparia and Selenicereus testudo .
It was first described in 1861 by Charles Lemaire . A nomenclature synonym is Nolina recurvata (Lem.) Hemsl. (1884).
Beaucarnea recurvata belongs to Section Beaucarnea . It grows in dry, tropical forests. The irregularly branched trees with the caudex thickened at the base are characteristic. Variable, falling, twisted leaves are typical, while the related Beaucarnea stricta has stiff leaves.
literature
- Mary & Gary Irish: Agaves, yuccas, and related plants: A gardener's guide . Timber Press, 2000, ISBN 0881924423 . Pp. 186-188, Pl 54.
- CC Walker: Beaucarnea . In: Urs Eggli (Hrsg.): Succulent lexicon. Monocotyledons . Eugen Ulmer, Stuttgart 2001, ISBN 3-8001-3662-7 , pp. 301 .
