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15 Small Palm Trees Varieties And What Makes Them Unique
By LOLA DESMOLE
Pygmy Date
This plant is simple to grow for beginners, growing 6 to 10 feet with sun to partial shade exposure. Its feather-like leaves usually extend up to 4 feet in length.
This species can be grown indoors or outdoors and thrives in temperatures that do not go below 30 degrees F. It grows yellow-hued flowers followed by purplish dates.
Bottle Palms
Named for its unique, bottle-shaped trunk, the bottle palm grows to be 5 to 7 feet tall but can go up to 10 feet after a few years. They require soil that drains well.
Although bottle palms are drought-tolerant, cold is a real threat to them, which is why these types of small palms are usually found in warmer areas.
Sago
The sago palm averages 3 to 10 feet tall and wide but may take up to 50 years to do so. It won't grow flowers, but its foliage is green and will grow symmetrically.
This low-growing palm appreciates a warm and well-lit environment, but can suffer in direct sunlight. It's drought tolerant and needs well-draining soil to thrive.
Spindle
The spindle palm gets its name from its light gray trunk, which is swollen in the middle giving it a spindle shape. This palm grows in tropical and semi-tropical areas.
It can be grown outdoors or as a house plant, but its size will vary. Outdoors, it grows up to 25 feet, whereas it will likely not go over 6 feet when grown indoors.
Parlor
Growing between 10 to 12 feet, the parlor palm has bamboo-like stems. Originally from subtropical and tropical areas, it thrives best in medium to bright indirect sunlight.
The general rule of thumb is that if the temperature is right for you, it's right for the parlor palm too. It has to be watered twice a week and repotted two to three times a year.