Kentia Palms (as they are known in Japanese) thrive in areas that fall under the influence of Japan’s kuroshio current, a warm Pacific trade current similar to North America’s Gulf Stream. While rare in much of northern Honshu, they are commonplace in Tokyo’s more tropical Ryukyu and Bonin island chains.
Here you see two species side-by-side: the Belmoreana on the left, and Fosteriana on the right.
I love this little part of Minami-Izu. This grove of Washingtonia and Date Palms sits on a spit of land off of Yumigahama beach. The benches allow people to sit among the trees and watch the sunset on the other side of the gracefully-curving beach.
These Butyagrus seeds are sprouting energetically, with many pushing two roots out (meaning, two plants from the same seed). These were raised in sphagnum moss, and took about 3 months to germinate. These cross-breeds are essentially unknown in Japan, and have only become popular among palm enthusiasts in the past decade. They are popular because…
“…for many reasons: they are a lovely deep green, they tend to look really lush and bushy, they stay for many years in the same-sized pot, and they need little sun or water.”
ご存知の通り日本では年に数回台風に直面します。時には深刻な被害を引き起こすほど強力ですが、ただ大雨をもたらすだけの時もあります。台風の強弱にかかわらず、通過した後には何かしらの痕跡を残していきます。最近の小笠原諸島旅行の際には、台風の爪痕を間近に見ることになりました。 Here in Japan we face typhoons several times a year. Sometimes, they are strong enough to cause serious damage, and other times they just bring a lot of rain. However strong they are, they affect everything in their path in some way. On a recent trip to the Ogasawara Islands, I saw the results…
King Palms like more water than most palms, with some even thriving in poorly drained areas. In their native habitat, they can often be seen growing next to and even in creek beds. It is quite a fast grower.
The Rhapis excelsa palm, known as Kannonchiku, in Japanese, is a naturally dwarf form of the Rhapis genus. There are many different plant species within this genus, many with unique leaf shape, colour, texture , and variegation of leaf.