Darren This is Hyophorbe lagenicaulis . One member of a small genus of palms endemic to the Mascarene island. This particular one develops a very swollen trunk particularly when grown in a pot. another member is the "spindle" palm H. verschaffeltii.which is much more commonly seen. They are rated zone 10/11 but the one pictured has survived down to 28 but have alwys covered with frost cloth in temps below 35. and used christmas lights. Grown from seed in the mid eighties and are now developing the swollen trunk but I have no room!! They make fantastic potted plants but will require winter protection, not so bad when in a pot takes a long time for the swollen feature to develop though there are some species of palms that require 50 years to mature !! Palm enthusists are patient?? lol Don't confuse this with Beucarnea often called Bottle palm or pregnant onion not a palm at all!!! gary

Hi, Chambeyronia macrocarpa-watermelon crownshaft seedlings in a 1 gallon pot. It was measured about 2 ft tall from the soil line and I have 8 avaialbe. I know you didn't ask this for trade, but I thought you might be interested to trade that for the Heliconia caribaea. I read your page and noticed that you will not deliver to California. I have a plant permit that comes along with a yellow/green label that is allowed to deliver all over the U.S. I don't know if you're fimiliar with that. I thought I could ask you if you're open to that. Hope to hear from you soon, - Leentje

That's been in the ground for about 14 years, and was about 5-10 years old when bought. I have seen some REALLY fat bottle-based bottle palms for sale--and they have been in 25 gallon containers. Perhaps the root constriction and nursery conditions (lots of water and fertilxier that drain out fast) promote the formation of much more pronounced bases. Of course, the more accentuated bottle bases, the more the palm nursery can ask $$.

Great looking palm! I had a bottle palm seedling for a while and it started to get big, but for some reason I gave up on it one year and didn't bring it inside. I regret it after seeing yours and I'm happy that I bought another one this year since they are beautiful palms (and like you said, they aren't as heavy as you'd expect). Growing palms in NY and anywhere up north is really rewarding! My trash has dead palm fronds and banana leaves while everyone else is throwing out normal NY plant debris haha. Thanks for sharing! Those damaged fronds will be replaced in no time! -Alex