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Plants › Palms & cycads

round-leaf fountain palm (Livistona rotundifolia)

Livistona rotundifolia is an evergreen, upright, single-trunked fan palm with a tree habit. It is reported to be perennial.

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Overview

Livistona rotundifolia is an evergreen, upright, single-trunked fan palm with a tree habit. It is reported to be perennial.

Origin and habitat

Sources differ on its native range, describing it as native to Southeast Asia, with more specific accounts including the Philippines, Sulawesi and the Maluku Islands in Indonesia, extending west to Banggi Island in Sabah, Malaysia, and east toward the Raja Ampat Islands. It can grow in humid tropical regions and is widely cultivated in tropical regions.

Characteristics

Sources differ on mature height, giving a range of about 1500–2500 cm. The leaves are reported to be palmately divided and spirally arranged along the trunk, with long petioles; the blade is nearly circular in outline, usually divided to around half its length, with shallowly forked segment tips and a main vein in each segment. The flowers are reported to occur in clusters on inflorescences borne on long stalks, with each flower having petals; the plant has bisexual flowers. The fruit is reported to be a fleshy, nearly spherical drupe that changes from green to orange or brick red as it matures and becomes black when fully mature.

Identification

Livistona rotundifolia is generally distinguished by a single upright trunk and nearly circular, palmate fan leaves whose central portion remains entire while the outer portion is regularly divided, with only shallowly forked segment tips; the trunk is straight and relatively smooth, with faint ring-like leaf scars.

Photos

Livistona rotundifolia
📷 Kumar83 · CC BY-SA 3.0 · source

Sources