''Sabal palmetto'' (, '' SAY-bəl''), also known as cabbage palm, cabbage palmetto, sabal palm, blue palmetto, Carolina palmetto, common palmetto, Garfield's tree, and swamp cabbage, is one of 15 species of palmetto

palm Palm most commonly refers to: * Palm of the hand, the central region of the front of the hand * Palm plants, of family Arecaceae ** List of Arecaceae genera **Palm oil * Several other plants known as "palm" Palm or Palms may also refer to: Music ...

. It is native to the

Southeast United States The Southeastern United States, also known as the American Southeast or simply the Southeast, is a geographical region of the United States located in the eastern portion of the Southern United States and the southern portion of the Eastern Uni ...

, the

Yucatán Peninsula The Yucatán Peninsula ( , ; ) is a large peninsula in southeast Mexico and adjacent portions of Belize and Guatemala. The peninsula extends towards the northeast, separating the Gulf of Mexico to the north and west of the peninsula from the C ...

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

, the

West Indies The West Indies is an island subregion of the Americas, surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, which comprises 13 independent island country, island countries and 19 dependent territory, dependencies in thr ...

, and the

Bahamas The Bahamas, officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an archipelagic and island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the Atlantic Ocean. It contains 97 per cent of the archipelago's land area and 88 per cent of its population. ...

Description

''Sabal palmetto'' grows up to tall, with the tallest on record measuring at 93 feet tall. Starting at half to two-thirds the height, the tree develops into a rounded, costapalmate fan of numerous leaflets. A costapalmate leaf has a definite costa (midrib), unlike the typical palmate or fan leaf, but the leaflets are arranged radially like in a palmate leaf. All costapalmate leaves are about across, produced in large compound panicles up to in radius, extending out beyond the leaves. The

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants (angiosperms) that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which angiosperms disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particular have long propaga ...

is a black

drupe In botany, a drupe (or stone fruit) is a type of fruit in which an outer fleshy part (exocarp, or skin, and mesocarp, or flesh) surrounds a single shell (the ''pip'' (UK), ''pit'' (US), ''stone'', or ''pyrena'') of hardened endocarp with a seed ...

about long containing a single seed. It is extremely salt-tolerant and is often seen growing on the coastal plain and along the coast of the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...

and the

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico () is an oceanic basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, mostly surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north, and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States; on the southw ...

.Flora of North America: ''Sabal palmetto''
/ref> Sabal palmetto00.jpg, ''Sabal palmetto'' from

Carl Friedrich Philipp von Martius Carl Friedrich Philipp (Karl Friedrich Philipp) von Martius (17 April 1794 – 13 December 1868) was a German botany, botanist and explorer. Between 1817 and 1820, he travelled 10,000 km through Brazil while collecting botanical specimens. His m ...

's ''Historia naturalis palmarum'' Sabal palmetto2.jpg, ''S. palmetto'' on

Virginia Beach, Virginia Virginia Beach (colloquially VB) is the most populous city in the U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. The city is located on the Atlantic Ocean at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay in southeastern Virginia. It is the sixth-most populous city in the ...

Enterprise palm tree.jpg, ''S. palmetto'' in

Enterprise, Alabama Enterprise is a city in the southeastern part of Coffee County, Alabama, Coffee County and the southwestern part of Dale County, Alabama, Dale County in Southeastern Alabama, United States. Its population was 28,711 at the 2020 United States cen ...

South Carolina palmetto tree, Columbia IMG 4790.JPG, ''S. palmetto'' growing near the South Carolina state capitol in Columbia Palm tree CANA.JPG, ''S. palmetto'' in the

Canaveral National Seashore The Canaveral National Seashore (CANA) is a National Seashore located between New Smyrna Beach and Titusville, Florida, in Volusia and Brevard Counties. The park, located on a barrier island, was created on January 3, 1975, by an act of Cong ...

, Florida SabalPalm627363.jpg, ''S. palmetto'' in beach habitat,

Manasota Key, Florida Manasota Key is a census-designated place (CDP) consisting mainly of the community of Englewood Beach in Charlotte County, Florida, United States. The population of the CDP was 1,326 at the 2020 census, up from 1,229 at the 2010 census. It is par ...

OldSabalPalmettoCrystalRiver.jpg, Wild specimens Palm tree bootjacks.JPG, Bootjacks Sabal sp. Lisa.jpg, ''S. palmetto'' 'Lisa' in

Fort Myers, Florida Fort Myers (or Ft. Myers) is a city in and the county seat of Lee County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 86,395; it was estimated to have grown to 95,949 in 2022, making it the List o ...

Distribution and habitat

''Sabal palmetto'' is native to the

subtropical The subtropical zones or subtropics are geographical zone, geographical and Köppen climate classification, climate zones immediately to the Northern Hemisphere, north and Southern Hemisphere, south of the tropics. Geographically part of the Ge ...

coastal regions of the American states of

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

, southeastern

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

, and extreme southern

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

. It is also cultivated elsewhere in the

Southeastern US The Southeastern United States, also known as the American Southeast or simply the Southeast, is a geographical region of the United States located in the eastern portion of the Southern United States and the southern portion of the Eastern Uni ...

, in some areas of southeastern

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

, southwestern

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

, and southeastern

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

. It can also be found alongside Cuba's northern coast (from

Havana Havana (; ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.Matanzas Matanzas (Cuban ; ) is the capital of the Cuban province of Matanzas Province, Matanzas. Known for its poets, culture, and Afro-American religions, Afro-Cuban folklore, it is located on the northern shore of the island of Cuba, on the Bay of Mat ...

),Van Deelen, Timothy R. 1991
Sabal palmetto
In: Fire Effects Information System, nline U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service the

Turks and Caicos The Turks and Caicos Islands (abbreviated TCI; and ) are a British Overseas Territory consisting of the larger Caicos Islands and smaller Turks Islands, two groups of tropical islands in the Lucayan Archipelago of the Atlantic Ocean and no ...

, the Yucatán Peninsula in Mexico, and

the Bahamas The Bahamas, officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic and island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the Atlantic Ocean. It contains 97 per cent of the archipelago's land area and 88 per cent of ...

.Biota of North America Program 2014 county distribution map
/ref> The species is

hardy Hardy may refer to: People * Hardy (surname) * Hardy (given name) * Hardy (singer), American singer-songwriter Places Antarctica * Mount Hardy, Enderby Land * Hardy Cove, Greenwich Island * Hardy Rocks, Biscoe Islands Australia * Hardy, ...

to the

US Department of Agriculture The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is an executive department of the United States federal government that aims to meet the needs of commercial farming and livestock food production, promotes agricultural trade and producti ...

's zone 8a, and has been reported to have some cold hardness down to , but needs hot and humid summers to grow well. Maintenance of the cabbage palm tree is very easy and very adaptable. The cabbage palmetto is known to tolerate drought, standing water and brackish water. Even though this palm is drought-tolerant, it thrives on regular light watering and regular feeding. It is highly tolerant of salt winds, but not saltwater flooding.

Cultivation

''Sabal palmetto'' is a popular landscape plant in the subtropical climates of the Gulf and south Atlantic states, mostly from coastal regions of North Carolina to Florida. Sabal palm is used extensively around beach and resort areas along the lower East Coast because of its tolerance of salt spray and drought. Because of their relatively long establishment period and prevalence on southern ranchlands, few, if any are grown from seed in nurseries. Instead, established plants are dug in the wild with small rootballs since virtually all the severed roots die and must be replaced by new roots in the new location. Most leaves are removed during

transplanting In agriculture and gardening, transplanting or replanting is the technique of moving a plant from one location to another. Most often this takes the form of starting a plant from seed in optimal conditions, such as in a greenhouse or protected n ...

to reduce

transpiration Transpiration is the process of water movement through a plant and its evaporation from aerial parts, such as leaves, stems and flowers. It is a passive process that requires no energy expense by the plant. Transpiration also cools plants, c ...

. Cabbage palms have excellent

hurricane A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system with a low-pressure area, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depending on its ...

resistance, but are frequently overpruned to supposedly lower wind loads. Sabal palm seed germination excels in hot and humid summer climates. Most references rate the species as hardy to USDA hardiness zone 8b. A small number of specimens are cultivated beyond the typical regions sabal is known to be cultivated in, including parts of

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

, northern

, and along the middle Atlantic coast from

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

to coastal

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

and coastal

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

. A long term specimen (covered with frost cloth in winter) grows in favorable microclimate (zone 7a/b) at the University of Bridgeport CT since 2009. The cabbage palm is remarkably resistant to fire, floods, coastal conditions, cold, high winds, and drought. Despite this, mortality has been caused by Texas phoenix palm decline (now known as Lethal Bronzing Disease), a

phytoplasma Phytoplasmas are obligate intracellular parasites of plant phloem tissue and of the insect vectors that are involved in their plant-to-plant transmission. Phytoplasmas were discovered in 1967 by Japanese scientists who termed them mycoplasma-li ...

found on the west coast of Florida in 2006. ''Sabal palmetto'' trunks appear in two different conditions, which can be confusing (see photo). When leaves die, the leaf bases typically persist for a while, creating a spiky, "basketweave" effect. These remnant leaf bases are called "bootjacks" or "boots", for short. The name stems from the "Y" shape that was reminiscent of devices used to aid individuals in removing boots. Transplanted palms are sometimes deliberately shorn of these bootjacks. Taller specimens are more likely to have lost their bootjacks and appear relatively smooth and columnar. The loss of bootjacks is a natural, if poorly understood, phenomenon, as the palm does not create a leaf

abscission Abscission () is the shedding of various parts of an organism, such as a plant dropping a leaf, fruit, flower, or seed. In zoology, abscission is the intentional shedding of a body part, such as the shedding of a claw, husk, or the autotomy of a ...

zone so the loss of the leaf bases results from some other physical or biological process. In 1998, a new mutant form of ''S. palmetto'' was discovered in southwest

, and named as a

cultivar A cultivar is a kind of Horticulture, cultivated plant that people have selected for desired phenotypic trait, traits and which retains those traits when Plant propagation, propagated. Methods used to propagate cultivars include division, root a ...

, ''Sabal palmetto'' 'Lisa'. This cultivar has unusually thick and leathery, largely fused leaflets that give the palm a unique and appealing appearance. Over 60% of the seedlings have the same leaf characteristics as the parent plant and ''Sabal palmetto'' 'Lisa' has been popularized in the nursery trade in Florida over the last 20 years and proven to be as resistant to heat, wind, cold, drought, and neglect as the common form while keeping its shape.

Uses

The growing heart of the new fronds, also known as the

terminal bud In botany, a bud is an undeveloped or embryonic shoot and normally occurs in the axil of a leaf or at the tip of a stem. Once formed, a bud may remain for some time in a dormant condition, or it may form a shoot immediately. Buds may be speci ...

, gives the tree its "cabbage" name, since this is extracted as a food and tastes like other undifferentiated plant meristem tissue, such as the heart of a cabbage or

artichoke The artichoke (''Cynara cardunculus'' var. ''scolymus''),Rottenberg, A., and D. Zohary, 1996: "The wild ancestry of the cultivated artichoke." Genet. Res. Crop Evol. 43, 53–58. also known by the other names: French artichoke, globe artichoke, ...

. It is one of several palm species that are sometimes used to make

heart of palm Heart of palm is a vegetable harvested from the inner core and growing bud of certain Palm tree, palm trees, most notably the coconut (''Cocos nucifera''), juçara (''Euterpe edulis''), açaí palm (''Euterpe oleracea''), sabal, palmetto (''Sabal ...

salad. Heart of palm was commonly eaten by Native Americans. However, extracting the heart kills this species of palm, because the terminal bud is the only point from which the palm can grow, so without this bud, the palm is not able to replace old leaves and eventually dies. The cabbage-like terminal bud has been eaten as hearts of palm. The bristles on the sheaths of young leaves have been made into scrubbing brushes. The trunks have been used as wharf piles. On June 28, 1776, Charleston patriots under

William Moultrie William Moultrie (; November 23, 1730 – September 27, 1805) was an American slaveowning planter and politician who became a general in the American Revolutionary War. As colonel leading a state militia, in 1776 he prevented the British from t ...

made a fort of palmetto trunks and from it defended successfully against the British in the Revolutionary War. The fruit is edible raw, and the seeds can be ground into flour.

Culture

The sabal palmetto is the official state tree of both Florida and South Carolina (the latter is nicknamed "The Palmetto State"). The annual football rivalry game between Clemson and

is known as the "Palmetto Bowl". A

silhouette A silhouette (, ) is the image of a person, animal, object or scene represented as a solid shape of a single colour, usually black, with its edges matching the outline of the subject. The interior of a silhouette is featureless, and the silhouett ...

of ''S. palmetto'' appears on the official flag of the US state of South Carolina. The seal of South Carolina also depicts the sabal palmetto. An image of a palmetto appears on the back of South Carolina's state quarter, which was issued in 2000. Two images of ''S. palmetto'' appear on the official great seal of the State of FloridaThe Great Seal of the State of Florida
/ref> and the

flag of Florida The flag of Florida is the official flag of the U.S. state of Florida. The flag consists of a red saltire on a white background, with the state seal superimposed on the center. Florida has had three official flags. The current state flag was ...

. File:Seal of South Carolina.svg, seal of South Carolina Flag_of_South_Carolina.svg, Flag of South Carolina Seal_of_Florida.svg, Seal of Florida Flag_of_Florida.svg, Flag of Florida

References

External links

United States Department of Agriculture Plants Profile for ''Sabal palmetto'' (cabbage palmetto)

''Sabal palmetto''
fro
Floridata

Interactive Distribution Map for Sabal palmetto
* {{Authority control palmetto Halophytes Flora of the Southern United States Flora of the Southeastern United States Trees of Cuba Trees of the Bahamas Flora of the Turks and Caicos Islands Symbols of Florida Symbols of South Carolina Plants described in 1788 Garden plants of North America Ornamental trees Trees of Northern America Plants used in Native American cuisine