Digital Garden

Caryota urens

Fishtail palm

                                Caryota Urens

Scientific Name- Caryota Urens

Common name- Toddy palm 

 Family- Arecaceae

Habit – Tree

Bark- Trunk smooth with annular leaf scars

Flowers- Leaves bipinnate (pinnate in juveniles), induplicate with a terminal leaflet; sheath triangular, disintegrating into strong black fibres, densely hairy; petiole channelled above; leaflets numerous, obliquely wedge shaped, upper margin irregularly toothed.

Leaves- Leaves compound, bipinnate, to 5 m long; pinnae 5-7 pairs, to 1.5 m long, leaflets lamina 25 x 10 cm, cuneiform, apex premorse.

Flower- Inflorescence spadix, shortly peduncled, much branched; spathes 3-5, Monoecious,  fully developed spadix are very large several feet long, drooping and freely hanging round about the palm, making it a very conspicuous object ,Flowers numerous, placed in threes, the central and the lowermost being female and develops late, the side flowers are male.

Fruit : Drupe round, yellow

Significance-

• The fibers are manufactured into ropes, brushes, brooms, baskets.

• From the pith a good variety of "sago" is obtained which is highly nutritious.

• Toddy is also obtained from this palm.

• Terminal bud is edible.