Phoenix Acaulis, Dwarf Date Palm - 0.5 kg Seeds

The Dwarf Date Palm (Phoenix acaulis) is a small, almost stemless date palm native to the dry hills and grasslands of the Indian subcontinent. Its rosette of stiff, grey-green feather leaves rises straight from the ground, making it a hardy ground-level palm rarely exceeding a metre or two in height. It is grown as a rugged ornamental and rockery palm, and in the wild its small orange-red fruits are eaten and its leaves used for matting and brooms.

Extremely tolerant of heat, poor stony soils and seasonal drought, it occurs naturally across the sub-Himalayan tract and central Indian plateaus, often surviving grassland fires by resprouting from its underground stem.

• Family: Arecaceae (palm family)
• Native region: Sub-Himalayan and central India
• Mature height: 1-2 m (nearly trunkless)
• Growth rate: Slow

Soak the cleaned seeds in warm water for 2-3 days, changing the water daily, to soften the coat. Sow about 1-2 cm deep in a sandy, free-draining mix and keep warm (28-35 C) and lightly moist. Like most palms germination is slow and erratic, often taking a month or more; pot on the single-leaf seedlings and transplant once well rooted.