Syagrus romanzoffiana
Encyclopedia
Syagrus romanzoffiana is a palm
Arecaceae
Arecaceae or Palmae , are a family of flowering plants, the only family in the monocot order Arecales. There are roughly 202 currently known genera with around 2600 species, most of which are restricted to tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate climates...

 native to South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...

, from northern Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...

 north to eastern Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...

 and west to eastern Bolivia
Bolivia
Bolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America...

. It is very similar to the coconut
Coconut
The coconut palm, Cocos nucifera, is a member of the family Arecaceae . It is the only accepted species in the genus Cocos. The term coconut can refer to the entire coconut palm, the seed, or the fruit, which is not a botanical nut. The spelling cocoanut is an old-fashioned form of the word...

 palm. It had been classified within the Cocos
Coconut
The coconut palm, Cocos nucifera, is a member of the family Arecaceae . It is the only accepted species in the genus Cocos. The term coconut can refer to the entire coconut palm, the seed, or the fruit, which is not a botanical nut. The spelling cocoanut is an old-fashioned form of the word...

genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...

 as Cocos plumosa, was assigned to Arecastrum, then moved to Syagrus
Syagrus
Syagrus is a genus of 30 to 42 species of Arecaceae , native to South America, with one species endemic to the Lesser Antilles. The genus is closely related to the Cocos, or coconut genus, and many Syagrus species produce edible seeds similar to the coconut.-Description:Palms in this group have...

. As a result of the nomenclature confusion, they often retain a previous, incorrect name in popular usage. It is a medium-sized palm, growing to 15 m tall, with pinnate leaves
Leaf
A leaf is an organ of a vascular plant, as defined in botanical terms, and in particular in plant morphology. Foliage is a mass noun that refers to leaves as a feature of plants....

.

Cultivation and uses

The Queen Palm is found in most tropical and subtropical areas. It's very popular as an ornamental tree and much used in urban landscaping
Landscaping
Landscaping refers to any activity that modifies the visible features of an area of land, including:# living elements, such as flora or fauna; or what is commonly referred to as gardening, the art and craft of growing plants with a goal of creating a beautiful environment within the landscape.#...

. However, the fronds die early and must be pruned to keep the tree visually pleasing. The sheaths of the pruned fronds remain on the tree for several months and are an ideal breeding place for snails and caterpillars. Its leaves
Leaves
-History:Vocalist Arnar Gudjonsson was formerly the guitarist with Mower, and he was joined by Hallur Hallsson , Arnar Ólafsson , Bjarni Grímsson , and Andri Ásgrímsson . Late in 2001 they played with Emiliana Torrini and drew early praise from the New York Times...

 and inflorescences are used as cattle fodder
Fodder
Fodder or animal feed is any agricultural foodstuff used specifically to feed domesticated livestock such as cattle, goats, sheep, horses, chickens and pigs. Most animal feed is from plants but some is of animal origin...

, specially for milking cows. Its fruits are edible, being sought by birds, as well as by mammals, including some wild canids, such as the Pampas Fox
Pampas Fox
The Pampas fox , also known as graxaim, sorro, Azara's fox, or Azara's zorro, is a medium sized zorro or "false" fox native to South American pampas and its range is through central South America in Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay and Brazil...

 and the Crab-eating Fox
Crab-eating Fox
The crab-eating fox , also known as the forest fox, wood fox, and the common fox, is an extant species of medium-sized canid endemic to the central part of South America and which appeared during the Pliocene epoch...

. The fruits consist of a hard nut surrounded with a thin layer of fibrous flesh that is orange and sticky when ripe. The flavor is sweet and could be described as a mixture of plum and banana.
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