Cryosophila warscewiczii
(H.Wendl.) Bartl.
Arecaceae
Acanthorrhiza warscewiczii H.Wendl.
Cryosophila albida Bartl.
Common Name: Palma de Escoba
Plant growing in the Balboa Park Botanical Building, Balboa Park, San Diego, California, USA.
Photograph by: Daderot
Creative Commons Zero, Public Domain Dedication
Plant growing in the Balboa Park Botanical Building, Balboa Park, San Diego, California, USA.
Photograph by: Daderot
Creative Commons Zero, Public Domain Dedication
The long spines on a plant at Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, Florida, USA
Photograph by: Carl E. Lewis
Image credit to Palmweb
Prop roots at the base of the stem
Photograph by: David Stang
Ripening fruits
Photograph by: Dick Culbert
Creative Commons Attribution 2.0
Long spines can form on the stem - those on the lower stem can root if they touch the ground.
Photograph by: Dick Culbert
Creative Commons Attribution 2.0
Inflorescence
Photograph by: User:Carstor
Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0-2.5-2.0-1.0
Leaf
Photograph by: Dick Culbert
Creative Commons Attribution 2.0
General Information
Palma de Escoba is a solitary-stemmed, evergreen palm growing up to 13 metres tall in the open, but generally smaller when growing in forests[
315- Title
- Flora of Barro Colorado Island
- Publication
-
- Author
- Croat. Thomas B.
- Website
- http://biogeodb.stri.si.edu/bioinformatics/croat/home
- Publisher
- Stanford University Press
- Year
- 1978
- ISBN
- 0-8047-0950-5
- Description
- A very good flora of an area in Panama. Written some years ago, so some of the names have been changed. The book is out of print, but the whole flora is now available on the web.
,
368- Title
- Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden. Volume 30
- Publication
-
- Author
-
- Website
- http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org
- Publisher
- Missouri Botanical Garden; St. Louis.
- Year
- 1943
- ISBN
-
- Description
- Contains parts of the Flora of Panama.This, and other volumes of the series, are available for download from the Internet.
]. The fan-shaped leaves can be 2 metres across. The unbranched stem, which is 10 - 15 cm in diameter above the enlarged base, bears simple or branched spines, at least when young, that are up to 16 cm, rarely to 35 cm, long[
315- Title
- Flora of Barro Colorado Island
- Publication
-
- Author
- Croat. Thomas B.
- Website
- http://biogeodb.stri.si.edu/bioinformatics/croat/home
- Publisher
- Stanford University Press
- Year
- 1978
- ISBN
- 0-8047-0950-5
- Description
- A very good flora of an area in Panama. Written some years ago, so some of the names have been changed. The book is out of print, but the whole flora is now available on the web.
].
The leaves are harvested from the wild and used locally as a source of fibre and for thatching.
Known Hazards
None known
Botanical References
315- Title
- Flora of Barro Colorado Island
- Publication
-
- Author
- Croat. Thomas B.
- Website
- http://biogeodb.stri.si.edu/bioinformatics/croat/home
- Publisher
- Stanford University Press
- Year
- 1978
- ISBN
- 0-8047-0950-5
- Description
- A very good flora of an area in Panama. Written some years ago, so some of the names have been changed. The book is out of print, but the whole flora is now available on the web.
,
768- Title
- Field Guide to the Palms of the Americas
- Publication
-
- Author
- Henderson A.; Galeano G.; Bernal R.
- Publisher
- Princeton University Press; Princeton, New Jersey.
- Year
- 1995
- ISBN
- 0-691-08537-4
- Description
- An excellent book, giving basic information on all the 550 species of palms native to the Americas that were known in 1995. Comprehensive information on the plants range and habitat, brief description, some uses and almost 250 photos.
Range
C. America - Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras.
Habitat
Tropical moist forest[
315- Title
- Flora of Barro Colorado Island
- Publication
-
- Author
- Croat. Thomas B.
- Website
- http://biogeodb.stri.si.edu/bioinformatics/croat/home
- Publisher
- Stanford University Press
- Year
- 1978
- ISBN
- 0-8047-0950-5
- Description
- A very good flora of an area in Panama. Written some years ago, so some of the names have been changed. The book is out of print, but the whole flora is now available on the web.
]. Lowland rain forest, at elevations from sea level to 1,200 metres[
768- Title
- Field Guide to the Palms of the Americas
- Publication
-
- Author
- Henderson A.; Galeano G.; Bernal R.
- Publisher
- Princeton University Press; Princeton, New Jersey.
- Year
- 1995
- ISBN
- 0-691-08537-4
- Description
- An excellent book, giving basic information on all the 550 species of palms native to the Americas that were known in 1995. Comprehensive information on the plants range and habitat, brief description, some uses and almost 250 photos.
].
Properties
| Other Uses Rating |  |
| Habit | Evergreen Tree |
| Height | 10.00 m |
| Pollinators | Beetles |
| Cultivation Status | Wild |
Cultivation Details
A plant of the lowland moist tropics.
Edible Uses
None known
Medicinal
None known
Other Uses
The leaves are used for thatching[
46- Title
- Dictionary of Economic Plants.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Uphof. J. C. Th.
- Publisher
- Weinheim
- Year
- 1959
- ISBN
- -
- Description
- An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.
].
The spines on the stem were once used for poison darts.
A fibre obtained from the plant is used locally for making brushes of very fine quality, carpets, tapestries etc[
454- Title
- Useful Fiber Plants of the World
- Publication
-
- Author
- Dodge C.R.
- Website
- http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/
- Publisher
- USDA; Washington.
- Year
- 1897
- ISBN
-
- Description
- A rather dated, but very comprehensive catalogue of fibre plants from around the world. The book can be downloaded from the Internet.
].
Propagation
Seed -
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Useful Tropical Plants Database 2014 by
Ken Fern,
web interface by
Ajna Fern
with help from
Richard Morris.
