I have updated the South Florida Plant Sales page. September to December are busy months., so I expect to add a few more events in August.

The White Sand palm is a very attractive and easy to grow in Florida. It is a skinny palm with a diameter of around 3/4 to 1″. Partial shade and moist conditions are recommended. It is slow growing. It is a clumping palm, meaning more than one trunk. Mine never makes more than two trunks. I planted mine near a fence for wind protection and is doing well. It is hardy from Zone 9b to 11.

Now, a bit of biology. The genus name was Dypsis, which is pronounced DIP-sis, and not DIE-sis. But botanists have recently moved many Dypsis, including this one, to the Chrysalidocarpus genus. Just as I was finally pronouncing Dypsis correctly, they moved almost everything to this new genus.

The palm is in the same genus as the famous Areca palm, which is also called the Butterfly palm. This palm is now called Chrysalidocarpus lutescens. But, feel free to call it an Areca palm. And no harm in quoting Shakespeare, “What’s in a name? that which we call a rose, By any other name would smell as sweet;” Oh, the wisdom of Juliet.

White Sand Palm like the others in its genus, originates in Madagascar, where it is critically endangered. Ex situ conservation (growing plants outside their natural habitat and later bringing them back and planting them in their natural habitat) helps ensure survival.

Happy Gardening,

Dave