Veitchia

Veitchia (synonym Adonidia) are also called Christmas palms, because their fruits, particularly decorative in Veitchia merrillii for example, ripen in winter, at Christmas time. They originate from tropical Asia and Oceania, and they are magnificent plants but very sensitive to cold, so they should be grown in containers or large pots to protect them from the cold in winter, in a bright room, a tropical greenhouse or a slightly heated veranda. Their size varies from 4m (13ft) in height for the Manila palm (Veitchia merrellii) to 28m (92ft) in height for the Veitchia arecina. They are characterized by a solitary trunk or false trunk, slender, ringed, with a foliar sleeve, a large and decorative crown, composed of long arched and pinnate leaves, divided into wide and tapered segments, carried by a short petiole. The male and female flowers are found together on branched panicles, emerging both between the leaves and in the axils of the leaves. The fruiting of these palms is generally decorative. Veitchia palms dislike dry atmospheres, they require warmth, light and water to thrive.