Yesterday, I posted about Datura with some hesitation. Not because the plant is not worthy of a post, but because it's a summer annual and here we are in the middle of February. I try to keep this post relevant to the seasons, but this is a tough time of year to find much inspiration outdoors (though now that some of our snow has melted, I have spied some daffodil foliage!). I'll keep looking for remarkable flora for February, but for the rest of this week, we're going to focus on palms.
Above, Phoenix dactylifera is growing in a Versailles box at Luxembourg Gardens in Paris. Date palms are easy to spot, as they almost look like a Chrysanthemum firework that is slowly drifting back to earth. The leaves (or fronds) are long and pinnate, with leaflets reaching up to 14".
The shots above and below are at Park Guell in Barcelona. The texture of date palms are so fine - almost furry looking -- it's hard to miss them. Date palms have been cultivated since at least 6000 BC and they are thought to be native to the middle east. Though it's hard to know for sure since they are now found in any tropical or Mediterranean climate.
The plants are dioecious, which means there are males and females. Obviously, only the females have the wonderful edible dates. I must have had dates on the brain this week, since just yesterday I had a terrific salad -- arugula, dates, ricotta salata and walnuts. Delicious.
Above, date palms in Oahu, Hawaii. As you can see the crown or head of the palm works its way up, leaving dying and dessicated leaves further down the trunk. Often these are removed manually as part of the tree's maintenance.
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