There are 17 species of Sabal or Cabbage palm.
They are native to areas around the Caribbean, North and South America.
The solitary palms range from 1 m high dwarfs to 20 m high.
There are some with underground stems (trunks).
The thick stems are typically covered with petiole bases.
Persistent bases have a plaited or woven appearance.
Stems on old palms may be faintly ringed or smooth and there are no spines.
There may only be a few leaves but typically there are more than 10.
The smooth petiole, 1 to 2 m long has a rounded lower surface.
The grooved upper surface usually has sharp edges.
There may be hairs which are lost on older leaves.
The petiole bases, with soft fibres on the edge split into two.
The blades differ from typical palmate ones by having a midrib (rachis or costa) – costapalmate.
The midrib can be short or long with a tip that is rounded or pointed.
Depending on the length of the midrib the blade can be flat to markedly curved with the end bending down.
Running down the edges of the costa is a raised ridge or collar – the hastula.
Only a few mms high it is most obvious on the upper surface (towards the axis).
The initially intact blades have folds running from the midrib to the edge.
They then split into segments (leaflets) along the upper fold.
This makes the individual segments induplicate with the edges folded up.
Segments can be 1 m long and up to 7 cm wide.
The lance-shaped segments may be free or in groups of 2, 3 or more that are joined for any distance.
There are often thread-like strands from the segment edges.
Segment tips are pointed or shallowly to deeply split (bifid).
Midribs are prominent on the upper surface.
Long or short inflorescences are in the axils of the upper leaves.
Erect or arching they are panicles branched up to 4 times.
The midrib (rachis) can be longer or shorter than the peduncle.
The prophyll has 2 keels and 2 pointed lobes.
There are peduncular bracts on most branches.
The branches (rachillae) have solitary spirally arranged flowers.
Flowers are directly attached to very short side shoots.
The calyx is a short tube with 3 small lobes.
The corolla has a tubular base with narrow elliptic lobes that spread widely.
The 6 stamens, on flattened filaments fused at the base, are in 2 whorls.
They are attached to the top of the corolla tube.
The dorsifixed anthers open sideways.
The narrow 3-lobed ovary, from 3 fused carpels has a grooved style.
There is a 3-lobed stigma and 3 ovules but usually only 1 develops.
There is a nectary in each of the 3 grooves in the ovary.
If the 2 to 2.5 cm fruit have 1 seed they are roughly spherical, if 2 or 3 seeds they are lobed.
The flesh has no fibres and they mature from green to black.
From 1 to 2 cm across the seeds are smooth and shiny.
J.F.
