General Meetings

In Search of the World’s Largest Coconut on the Palmyra Atoll

(Meeting Summary by Lenny Goldstein)

A large crowd ignored rainy weather to attend the South Florida Palm Society’s fifth meeting of the year. The featured speaker was Dr. Patrick Griffith, who described a mission last November to expand knowledge of the Palmyra coconut palm. Last collected over 100 years ago by Italian botanist Odoardo Beccari, it owes its fame to the fact that it produces a rather triangular seednut that is the largest of any of the hundreds of varieties of coconut palms known worldwide.

The Palmyra Atoll is a relative speck of land — more accurately, several specks of land — located in the central Pacific Ocean, about 1,000 miles south of Hawaii. While it is almost entirely owned by The Nature Conservancy, it is administered by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, and is officially known as the Palmyra Atoll National Wildlife Refuge. Patrick, Executive Director of Montgomery Botanical Center, presented a program describing and illustrating his team’s efforts to determine whether the giant Palmyra coconut is endemic to the atoll.

A couple of questions had to be addressed: Was the giant coconut (Cocos nucifera var. palmyrensis) introduced by early Polynesians? Did it arrive naturally by floating? And there was a complication: From time to time, attempts had been made to create a copra industry on the atoll by introducing quantities of coconuts (Cocos nucifera var. nucifera) from Hawaii. One such attempt, in 1950-51, resulted in the production of copra for several years during the decade. Over time, those feral coconuts multiplied on the atoll and started to hybridize with the big coconut. The Griffith group’s challenge was — figuratively — to separate the wheat from the chaff.

The giant coconut was compared with the feral varieties for several characteristics: adaptation to dispersal, ease of transport, agronomic efficiency, ease of husking, water content, presence in inhabited islands, and representation in germplasm collections. The investigation concluded that Cocos nucifera var. palmyrensis is (1) native and endemic to Palmyra, (2) a vital Crop Wild Relative, (3) under threat of genetic dilution, and (4) essential to conserve.

Patrick’s project is not over. In future visits, plans are to map the occurrence of the giant coconut, expand sampling, and expand documentation. The SFPS will, of course, be eager to present additional findings to our members.

Following the program, we conducted our usual auction. We continue to be grateful to the donors who help distribute interesting plants to our members. Here are the species that made their way to new gardens:

Allagoptera caudescens

Anthurium moodeanum

Archontophoenix myolensis

Archontophoenix tuckeri

Carpoxylon macrospermum

Coccothrinax montgomeryana

Coccothrinax sp.

Copernicia alba

Copernicia fragrans

Copernicia gigas

Dictyosperma album var. conjugatum

Euphorbia sp.

Gaussia gomez-pompae

Pritchardia pacifica

Pseudophoenix sargentii

Sabal lougheediana

Sabal miamiensis

Dear Palm Enthusiast,

Our General Meeting is on Monday, October 6 at 7:00 pm at the Corbin “A” Building in Fairchild Tropical Botanical Garden. Our speaker, Dr. Patrick Griffith, the Executive Director of the Montgomery Botanical Center, who will present:

Searching for the World’s Largest Coconut on the Palmyra Atoll

The Palmyra Atoll is right at the center of nowhere in the Pacific Ocean, 3,300 miles southwest of North America and 3,300 miles northeast of New Zealand. Until last November, no one had collected any of the remarkable native coconuts in over a century. But then Dr. Patrick Griffith and his team from Montgomery Botanical Center traveled to the atoll to observe and collect seeds of the Palmyra palm. They brought back nearly a dozen Palmyra coconuts and they are reportedly all growing well in MBC’s greenhouse. Special thanks to Lenny Goldstein for his post on Facebook (much of which I copied).

You are invited to bring your favorite potluck dish to enhance the food table and we’d also be very appreciative if you’d donate plants for our auction. They don’t need to be palms. Meetings are open to the public. Members can participate in the plant auction.

See you there, Monday night!

Other Activities Not to be Missed:

November 1:

Fall Garden Tour at Dr. Block’s Botanical Garden in South Miami. Long ago, he realized the great benefits of using reverse osmosis water for irrigation. He continues to add to his garden, including rare aroids and other plants. Tour and lunch planned from 10:00 am to 1:00 pm. The road in front of Dr. Block’s home is narrow so carpooling is encouraged.

Reservations will be required.

I will pass along instructions on how to RSVP as we get closer to this date.

November 8-9:

Fall Palm Show and Sale, Fairchild Tropical Botanical Garden. We had a great sale last year, and the growers will be returning, plus a few more, offering an awesome choice of palms and cycads. The sale will be held from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm each day. We plan on walking tours of the FTBG world class palm collection. More details to be posted later. If you are interested in being a vendor, please send an email to

David.Lord@southfloridapalmsociety.org

.

December 1:

Holiday Party: We will join with our friends from the Tropical Flowering Tree Society for a holiday feast followed by a very lively plant auction. More details will be sent later.

Consider becoming a member to help support our activities. The garden tour and holiday party are free if you are a member. You can sign up on our website:

www.southfloridapalmsociety.org/join

Thank you for your support.

David Lord

President SFPS

This page contained an index of links:

• Sep 25, 2025: SFPS General Meeting October 6, 2025 and Upcoming Events Announcement

October to December, 2025 Activities

October 6, 2025: General Meeting.

FTBG Corbin “A” building. Our guest speaker will be announced soon. The meeting will be potluck, so please bring a dish to share. After the presentation, we will hold a plant auction. All donations are appreciated. Only SFPS members can participate in the auction.

November 1, 2025, Fall Garden Tour.

Our tour will be at Dr. Block’s Botanical Garden in South Miami. A lunch will be provided by SFPS. Members may participate in the tour for free, and guests need to pay $15.00.

November 8 and 9, 2025, Fall Palm Show and Sale.

We are very happy to return to Fairchild for our fall sale. The sale will be from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm, each day. The growers will be offering palms and cycads, of which some are very rare. They will also be ready to give good advice on selecting and maintaining your plants. More details will be available as we get closer to the sale.

December 1, 2025. Holiday Party.

The festivities begin at 7:00 pm, with shared dishes from our attendees. An auction of donated plants will follow the dinner. We are hoping the Tropical Flowering Tree Society will join us.

SFPS General Meeting, August 4, Curating the Plants of Fairchild, Why We Grow What We Grow, by FBG Director, Brett Jestrow

(Summarized by Lenny Goldstein)

A good botanical garden isn’t just an aggregation of plants, thrown together haphazardly. Thanks to Dr. Brett Jestrow, those who attended the August general meeting of the SFPS learned how things are done at Fairchild Garden. Brett is Director of Collections there, and he shared with the crowd the many things that must be considered to successfully curate a plant collection.

Following Brett’s informative program, Dave Lord conducted

our plant auction, and, as usual, members were generous in their contributrions. Here’s what the winners took home that night:

PLANT DONOR

Brugmansia sp. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Toi Mansen

Calathea zebrina . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dave Lord

Carpoxylon macrospermum . . . . . . Dave Lord

Coccothrinax fragrans . . . . . . . . . . . Peter Warner

Coccothrinax sp. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dagoberto Rodriguez

Cryosophila stauracantha . . . . . . . . Toi Mansen

Licuala sp. ‘FTG’. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dagoberto Rodriguez

Sabal uresana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pete McKay

Vriesea sp. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dave Lord

Attendees also heard an important announcement from our president: We have confirmation of the dates for our Fall Show & Sale at Fairchild. Breaking a tradition of more than 40 years, the event will be held on the SECOND full weekend of November — the 8th and 9th. Mark your calendars for the first plant club event of southern Florida’s version of autumn.

SFPS General Meeting, June 9, 2025, “My Trip to Mauritius in 2023: How My Travels with the IPS to the Indian Ocean led me to one of the Greatest Botanical Gardens in the World,” by Laz Priegues. (Summarized by Lenny Goldstein).

A power outage delayed the June 2 SFPS meeting, but we held it a week later, and, as usual, Laz Priegues presented a great travelogue. His subject this time was “My Trip to Mauritius in 2023: How My Travels with the IPS to the Indian Ocean Led Me to One of the Greatest Botanical Gardens in the World.” If you had been in attendance, you would have learned how Pamplemousses garden (or the SSR Botanic Garden) came to be named after . . . grapefruits. The garden, which dates back to 1770, is not small — 91 acres — but Laz conducted a thorough tour of its outstanding features.

See

https://ssrbg.govmu.org/ssrbg/

for more on the Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam Botanic Garden

Dr. Laz Priegues is medical internist and a Director on both the SFPS and International Palm Society Board.

Following the program, we held our auction, and our generous donors brought a wide variety of interesting plants. Here’s the detail:

Alocasia portei . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Bob and Peck Pope

Anthurium faustomirandae . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Bob and Peck Pope

Carpoxylon macrospermum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . David Lord

Coccothrinax argentata (2) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dennis Lyt

Coccothrinax fragrans (2) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Montgomery Botanical Center

Coccothrinax sp. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Montgomery Botanical Center

Colocasia esculenta ‘Nancy’s Revenge’ . . . . . . Bob and Peck Pope

Pritchardia thurstonii . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Paulette Johnson

In addition, we gave away palm seeds of the following species, donated by Montgomery Botanical Center: Aiphanes minima and Pritchardia pacifica.

This page contained an index of links:

• Jun 11, 2025: SFPS General Meeting, June 9, 2025, “My Trip to Mauritius in 2023: How My Travels with the IPS to the Indian Ocean led me to one of the Greatest Botanical Gardens in the World”, by Laz Priegues.

In his program for the SFPS meeting on April 7, Chip Jones gave a roomful of appreciative folks a broad tour of Peru, a botanically captivating country. He’s certainly qualified, having been there eight times in the past two years! Via both word and photo, Chip hammered home the point that Peru is not simply an expanse of low, flat terrain. Accordingly, lots of its high-elevation plant species would not be at home in the soil and climatic conditions of southern Florida, but a trove of other material finds our region just peachy.

The program was followed by an auction that was in several instances hotly-contested. Following is the list of the auction items and the names of the donors. We are, as always, grateful for the generosity.

PLANTS

Coccothrinax fragrans . . . . . . . . . . Montgomery Botanical Center

Coccothrinax spissa . . . . . . . . . . . . Paulette Johnson

Coccothrinax sp. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Montgomery Botanical Center

Cocos nucifera hybrid . . . . . . . . . . Mary Ann Gibbs

Copernicia gigas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Toi Mansen

Euterpe oleracea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Action Theory Nursery

Howea forsteriana . . . . . . . . . . . . . Action Theory Nursery

Mauritia flexuosa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Action Theory Nursery

Washingtonia robusta . . . . . . . . . . Action Theory Nursery

BOOK

“The Biology of Trees Native

to Tropical Florida” . . . . . . . . . . . . . Montgomery Botanical Center

On February 3, 43 hardy souls were transported to Acre, the remotest of Brazil’s 26 states, on an expedition to collect palm seeds. In truth, they made the trip in the comfort of the Garden House at Fairchild Garden during the first SFPS meeting of 2025. The adventure was led by Dr. Joanna Tucker Lima, Living Collections Manager at Montgomery Botanical Center.

As distant as Acre is from Brazil’s enormous eastern cities, it isn’t unpopulated. The state’s capital, Rio Branco, has some 370,000 residents. Small communities dot its abundant waterways, and therein lies a problem: deforestation to create farms. The going wasn’t easy for the collection team; even the federal highway contained potholes seemingly large enough to swallow young capybaras. Dirt roads turned slick during periodic heavy rains. At one point, the collectors’ vehicle, which wasn’t in top condition, slid down a sloppy road until it came to rest against an embankment.

In spite of all the obstacles, the state is still rich in palm species, and Dr. Lima, along with MBC’s Dr. Larry Noblick and assistants from the Federal University of Acre, collected, cleaned, and packed 600 seeds representing 17 species. The palms that were in fruit ranged from huge Attaleas, many of which thrive in what are now pastures, to Iriartellas, Socrateas, and Mauritias, still ensconced in remnant forest pockets. The seed shipment arrived in Miami after a considerable holdup in Brazil, and seedlings are now popping up in the MBC greenhouse under the watchful eye of Nursery Curator Vickie Murphy.

But what about the species that weren’t in fruit? Not to worry! Dr. Lima will be returning to Acre for additional expeditions, and we anticipate seeing her again with updates on other seed acquisitions.

David Lord conducted his first meeting as SFPS president, and before the program he treated us to a delicious array of food dishes prepared by his wife, Marcia, a native of Brazil. After Dr. Lima’s program, David presided over a spirited auction of some great palms. We are, as always, grateful for the contributions. Here is the list of species and donors (as well as source, if wild-collected):

Carpoxylon macrospermum, 3-gal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . David Lord

Coccothrinax boschiana, 7-gal., Dominican Republic . . . . . . MBC

Coccothrinax fragrans, 3-gal., Dominican Republic . . . . . . . MBC

Coccothrinax sp., 3-gal., Dominican Republic . . . . . . . . . . . . MBC

Heterospathe elata, 1-gal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MBC

Rhapis excelsa, variegated, dug stems . . . . . . . . Paulette Johnson

Sabal lougheediana, 7-gal., Netherland Antilles . . . . . . . . . . MBC

Sabal miamiensis, 3-gal., Miami-Dade County . . . . . . . . . . . . MBC

Anthurium ‘Arrow’, 1-gal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tom Dickinson

SFPS General Meeting, Feb 3, 2025 Seed Collection Expedition to Acre, Brazil By Lenny Goldstein.

On February 3, 43 hardy souls were transported to Acre, the remotest of Brazil’s 26 states, on an expedition to collect palm seeds. In truth, they made the trip in the comfort of the Garden House at Fairchild Garden during the first SFPS meeting of 2025. The adventure was led by Dr. Joanna Tucker Lima, Living Collections Manager at Montgomery Botanical Center.

As distant as Acre is from Brazil’s enormous eastern cities, it isn’t unpopulated. The state’s capital, Rio Branco, has some 370,000 residents. Small communities dot its abundant waterways, and therein lies a problem: deforestation to create farms. The going wasn’t easy for the collection team; even the federal highway contained potholes seemingly large enough to swallow young capybaras. Dirt roads turned slick during periodic heavy rains. At one point, the collectors’ vehicle, which wasn’t in top condition, slid down a sloppy road until it came to rest against an embankment.

In spite of all the obstacles, the state is still rich in palm species, and Dr. Lima, along with MBC’s Dr. Larry Noblick and assistants from the Federal University of Acre, collected, cleaned, and packed 600 seeds representing 17 species. The palms that were in fruit ranged from huge Attaleas, many of which thrive in what are now pastures, to Iriartellas, Socrateas, and Mauritias, still ensconced in remnant forest pockets. The seed shipment arrived in Miami after a considerable holdup in Brazil, and seedlings are now popping up in the MBC greenhouse under the watchful eye of Nursery Curator Vickie Murphy.

But what about the species that weren’t in fruit? Not to worry! Dr. Lima will be returning to Acre for additional expeditions, and we anticipate seeing her again with updates on other seed acquisitions.

David Lord conducted his first meeting as SFPS president, and before the program he treated us to a delicious array of food dishes prepared by his wife, Marcia, a native of Brazil. After Dr. Lima’s program, David presided over a spirited auction of some great palms. We are, as always, grateful for the contributions. Here is the list of species and donors (as well as source, if wild-collected):

Carpoxylon macrospermum, 3-gal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . David Lord

Coccothrinax boschiana, 7-gal., Dominican Republic . . . . . . MBC

Coccothrinax fragrans, 3-gal., Dominican Republic . . . . . . . MBC

Coccothrinax sp., 3-gal., Dominican Republic . . . . . . . . . . . . MBC

Heterospathe elata, 1-gal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MBC

Rhapis excelsa, variegated, dug stems . . . . . . . . Paulette Johnson

Sabal lougheediana, 7-gal., Netherland Antilles . . . . . . . . . . MBC

Sabal miamiensis, 3-gal., Miami-Dade County . . . . . . . . . . . . MBC

Anthurium ‘Arrow’, 1-gal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tom Dickinson

We’ve just waved farewell to 2024, a year that was good to the SFPS in so many ways. First and foremost, we in southern Florida were spared the vicious hurricanes that shredded many communities upstate. Our gardens are intact; sometimes it just pays to be lucky.

We had some fine programs in 2024. Dr. Patrick Griffith, Executive Director of Montgomery Botanical Center, sent us off to a flying start in February with his presentation about two interesting West Indian palm species — Sabal antillensis and Sabal lougheediana. The former has been recovering from predation since 1979, but the latter, endemic to Bonaire and described only in 2019, is critically-endangered.

At our April meeting, for the first time in a dozen years, we assembled a team of experts to answer questions about palm culture. The well-respected pros were Ellis Brown, Rick Johnson, Vickie Murphy, Jeff Searle, and Mike Tevelonis. Folks in attendance came away from the meeting much better-prepared to improve the performance of their palms, in both the short and the long term.

Our June speaker was Andrew Street, Palm Curator at Montgomery Botanical Center and former SFPS board member. In “Feeding Your Palms and Your Soil,” he addressed the challenges of getting the most out of our miserable native soils. Andrew described his program as “a discussion on fertilizer and soil and the middlemen we don’t often think about — fungi.”

In August, Daniel Tucker, a doctoral student at Florida International University and a fellow at Montgomery Botanical Center, presented a program titled “The Search for Sabal miamiensis: New Discoveries.” Daniel offered solid proof of the persistence of our newest and most elusive native Florida palm species and put to rest the controversy that had lingered for over 40 years.

In October, SFPS board member Dr. Laz Priegues treated us to another beautiful photo essay, this time reliving his trip with IPS members to the Indian Ocean Island of La Reunion, the source of a number of the most popular species grown in our region. We’re fortunate that Laz not only loves to travel, but is happy to create and share a visual record of his visits.

In addition to the general meetings, which are open to the public, the SFPS conducted well-received members-only Saturday tours in the spring and fall. In May we visited Toi Mansen’s Everything Green Nursery, located on a site blessed with marl soil, followed by a stop at his beautifully-landscaped home. We then concluded the day with a picnic at the palm-draped home of Mike Street.

In October, SFPS members and guests were treated to a tour of the two locations of Signature Trees & Palms. Beautiful specimens were seen everywhere, and the stunning 3.75-acre shadehouse wowed the visitors. To wrap up the tour, Signature owner Keith Lane generously treated the crowd to a fine barbecue lunch.

The SFPS also held two successful sales in 2024. In April, we were hosted, for the first time, by the University of Miami. In addition to the plant sale, we offered tours of both the Gifford Arboretum and the Palmetum on both days. In November, our host was Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, the venue for many, many of our sales since 1979. As usual, the Palmetum teemed with a great selection of well-grown palms for sale, along with a free seed distribution that comprised some two dozen species.

Last, but not least, in early December we celebrated the year with a lively holiday party. For the second year in a row, we held the event jointly with the Tropical Flowering Tree Society. After TFTS gave away dazzling poinsettia cultivars, we conducted our traditional silent and live auctions.

I’m pleased to announce that our board of directors remains largely intact for next year, but there is one very notable loss: Rick Johnson, longtime board member and past president, will be leaving the Miami area soon and chose not to run for reelection. We’re grateful for his service to the South Florida Palm Society, and we wish him and his wife, Jodi, the best of luck in their new home.

Palm Society members voted in a new director, David Lord, at the holiday party, and reelected Linda Apriletti, Ellis Brown, Lenny Goldstein, and Mike Tevelonis. In turn, the new board elected the following officers for 2025: President – David Lord, Vice-President – Julio Alvarez, Recording Secretary – Linda Apriletti, Corresponding Secretary – Horace Hobbs, and Treasurer – Karen Bradley.

I speak for the Board of Directors in hoping that you enjoyed the programs and events we offered in 2024. We look forward to another interesting year in 2025.

Sincerely,

Julio Alvarez

Outgoing President

South Florida Palm Society

We have an exciting program in store for you- Dr Laz Priegues will share great pictures and talk about his recent trip with the International Palm Society to the Indian Ocean Island of La Reunion. The island is home to many indigenous species that we successfully cultivate here in Miami as well as beautiful private and public gardens.

Doors to the Corbin Building open at 7:00 for some food and socializing. We encourage you to bring one of your favorite potluck items to enhance the food choices. After Laz’s program, we’ll conduct an plant auction, and your contribution of plants toward that endeavor will be greatly appreciated.

June 3, Andrew Street, Curator of Palms, Montgomery Botanical Center, The June general meeting of the SFPS featured an informative lecture by Andrew Street on how to get the most out of the soils of our region through understanding the role of fungi. It generated lots of questions from those in attendance. The program was followed by the auction of nine very interesting plants, two batches of seed, and a copy of Craft and Riffle’s “An Encyclopedia of Cultivated Palms.” As always, we’re very grateful for the generosity of our members in providing items for our auction.

SFPS General Meeting – October 3, 2022

Jody Haynes

“Moving Large Specimen Palms in South Florida”

If you would like to join the SFPS please visit our

Membership

page.

https://southfloridapalmsociety.org/join

As homeowners in our region are aware, the addition of just a single specimen palm can help transform a bland landscape into a showplace. But we also know — sometimes from painful experience — that not every palm species takes kindly to being moved; the simple yank-and-replant technique just doesn’t work for all of them.

We invite you to attend the October 3, 2022 meeting of the South Florida Palm Society with guest speaker Jody Haynes. For more than 12 years, Jody has been employed as Business Development & Estimating Manager of Signature Trees & Palms. His photos and commentary will demonstrate how the pros do it.

As usual, doors to the Corbin Building at Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden open at 7:00 PM. The Society will provide light fare and drinks, but, as always, we urge you to bring one of your favorite potluck dishes — homemade or store-bought — to share with everyone.

Following the program, we will conduct our regular palm auction. We encourage you to donate a few palms — including name tags — toward that effort. Our auctions this year have gotten some very interesting species out into the community, and we hope to continue the trend. Please bring cash or check in case the card reader acts up.

Hope to see you there!

OCTOBER 3rd, 2022, Doors @ 7:00 PM Meeting @ 7:30 PM

Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden

South Gate, Corbin Building

General meetings are held on the

first Monday of February, April, June, August, and October

, with guest speakers at Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden’s Garden House, doors at 7:00 pm, business & speaker by 7:30 pm. Use the South Entrance and walk through the stone & iron gate. Have a speaker suggestion for the Society? If so, please

contact us

.

SFPS meets on the first Monday of every even-numbered month.

Dates for 2022:

February 7, 2022

April 4, 2022

June 6, 2022

August 1, 2022

October 3, 2022

December 5, 2022

Please

sign up to our e-mail

for updates and news.

The SFPS generally plans garden tours in the spring & fall. These events range from nurseries specializing in palms, to private residences, and other locations of interest to palm enthusiasts.

SFPS’s (5) bimonthly meetings are open to non-members. The SFPS

holiday in

December

is free to members, and guests may attend for $10. The party has traditionally featured a pot luck dinner, live auction, and silent auction.

Palm shows / sales

are also coordinated along with traditional aspects of the Society. Thanks for your support, you mail sign up for the SFPS e-mail list at the bottom of this page, or via this

link

.

South Florida Palm Society (SFPS) E-mail list

* indicates required

Email Address *

First Name *

Last Name *

SFPS General Meeting – June 6, 2022

Dr. Lazaro Priegues (Director, SFPS)

“Plant Exploration on the Island of Socotra”

Socotra, an 82-mile-long island in the Indian Ocean, is home to some of the most interesting flora in the world. Yet it has been botanized for less than 125 years! When Scottish academic Isaac Balfour first explored it in 1880, he brought back over 200 plants species never before known to science. As a result of Socotra”s longtime isolation, the count of endemic species is now somewhere between 308 and 325 — nearly 40% of the island’s flora.

In March of this year, SFPS board member

Dr. Lazaro Priegues

spent a week in Socotra. At our June 6 meeting, he will present a program titled

“Plant Exploration on the Island of Socotra.”

Although the very dry climate of most of the island isn’t amenable to supporting many palm species, you’ll enjoy seeing Laz’s photos of some of the sights of Socotra, including the distinctive, and distinctively-named, Dragon’s Blood Tree.

Meeting will include a potluck and plant auction, contributions from member’s kitchens & gardens. We encourage you to bring your favorite potluck food dish, as well as tagged plants for the auction that follows the program. Thank you for your contributions.

Hope to see you soon!

JUNE 6th, 2022, Doors @ 7:00 PM Meeting @ 7:30 PM

Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden

South Gate, Corbin Building

General meetings are held on the

first Monday of February, April, June, August, and October

, with guest speakers at Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden’s Garden House, doors at 7:00 pm, business & speaker by 7:30 pm. Use the South Entrance and walk through the stone & iron gate. Have a speaker suggestion for the Society? If so, please

contact us

.

SFPS meets on the first Monday of every even-numbered month.

Dates for 2022:

February 7, 2022

April 4, 2022

June 6, 2022

August 1, 2022

October 3, 2022

December 5, 2022

Please

sign up to our e-mail

for updates and news.

The SFPS generally plans garden tours in the spring & fall. These events range from nurseries specializing in palms, to private residences, and other locations of interest to palm enthusiasts.

SFPS’s (5) bimonthly meetings are open to non-members. The SFPS

holiday in

December

is free to members, and guests may attend for $10. The party has traditionally featured a pot luck dinner, live auction, and silent auction.

Palm shows / sales

are also coordinated along with traditional aspects of the Society. Thanks for your support, you mail sign up for the SFPS e-mail list at the bottom of this page, or via this

link

.

South Florida Palm Society (SFPS) E-mail list

* indicates required

Email Address *

First Name *

Last Name *

SFPS General Meeting – April 4, 2022

Dr. BRAHAM DHILLON (Assistant Professor of Palm Horticulture at UF-IFAS in Ft. Lauderdale)

“Understanding Fungal Pathogens of Palms”

Meeting will include a potluck and plant auction, contributions from member’s kitchens & gardens. Thank you for your contrinutions.

Our guest speaker on Monday, April 4, will be Dr. Braham Dhillon, Assistant Professor at the IFAS station in Ft. Lauderdale. His topic will be “Understanding Fungal Pathogens of Palms”. Dr. Dhillon earned his Ph.D. in plant pathology at Purdue University in 2010 and has been at the IFAS station since 2019.

“Dr. Dhillon is a molecular plant pathologist working on fungal pathogens of palms, other woody plants and crops of agricultural significance. His research (70%) and extension (30%) programs focus on leveraging pathogen biology for diagnostics and management of fungal pathogens and disease challenges faced by nurseries and stakeholders.” (

UF IFAS

)

Doors at Fairchild Garden will open at 7:00, and, as usual, light snacks will be served.

We also encourage you to bring potluck dishes for the food table. The meeting will start at about 7:30, and it will be followed by our auction. The SFPS will happily accept donations of plants for the auction.

APRIL 4th, 2022, @ 7:00 PM Speaker @ 7:30 PM

Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden

South Gate, Garden House

Please consider bringing a plant for the auction, and make sure it is tagged with the binomial (scientific name).

General meetings are held on the

first Monday of February, April, June, August, and October

, with guest speakers at Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden’s Garden House, doors at 7:00 pm, business & speaker by 7:30 pm. Use the South Entrance and walk through the stone & iron gate. Have a speaker suggestion for the Society? If so, please

contact us

.

SFPS meets on the first Monday of every even-numbered month.

Dates for 2022:

February 7, 2022

April 4, 2022

June 6, 2022

August 1, 2022

October 3, 2022

December 5, 2022

Please

sign up to our e-mail

for updates and news.

The SFPS generally plans garden tours in the spring & fall. These events range from nurseries specializing in palms, to private residences, and other locations of interest to palm enthusiasts.

SFPS’s (5) bimonthly meetings are open to non-members. The SFPS

holiday in

December

is free to members, and guests may attend for $10. The party has traditionally featured a pot luck dinner, live auction, and silent auction.

Palm shows / sales

are also coordinated along with traditional aspects of the Society. Thanks for your support, you mail sign up for the SFPS e-mail list at the bottom of this page, or via this

link

.

Attalea phalerata Photo: Joanna M. Tucker Lima, PhD

South Florida Palm Society (SFPS) E-mail list

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SFPS General Meeting – February 7, 2022

Dr. MICA McMILLAN (Assistant Professor of Palm Horticulture at UF-IFAS in Ft. Lauderdale)

“Updates on UF Palm Research”

Meeting will include a potluck and plant auction, contributions from member’s kitchens & gardens.

Current and future research will be discussed with a focus on nutrition, water quality, rooting, soil interactions, and innovative methods to determine treatment effects on palm health. The program will be followed by Q&A.

Dr. McMillan is the Assistant Professor of Palm Horticulture at the Fort Lauderdale Research and Education Center. As a researcher in the agriculture, turfgrass and media industries, she focused on developing chemistries to improve plant and soil health. Dr. McMillan’s research will primarily focus on palm and ornamental plants from seed to establishment under a variety of environmental and edaphic conditions with emphasis on salinity tolerance, drought stress and nutrient uptake. Dr. McMillan earned her B.S. and M.S. from Auburn University and her Ph.D. from the University of Florida.

FEBRUARY 7th, 2022, @ 7:00 PM Speaker @ 7:30 PM

Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden

South Gate, Garden House

Masks mandatory as per Garden policy except when eating.

The Society will provide chicken, coleslaw, potato salad, sodas, + water, and we welcome you to add your favorite potluck treats to the mix.

Please consider bringing a plant for the auction, and make sure it is tagged with the binomial (scientific name).

General meetings are held on the

first Monday of February, April, June, August, and October

, with guest speakers at Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden’s Garden House, doors at 7:00 pm, business & speaker by 7:30 pm. Use the South Entrance and walk through the stone & iron gate. Have a speaker suggestion for the Society? If so, please

contact us

.

SFPS meets on the first Monday of every even-numbered month.

Dates for 2022:

February 7, 2022

April 4, 2022

June 6, 2022

August 1, 2022

October 3, 2022

December 5, 2022

Please

sign up to our e-mail

for updates and news.

The SFPS generally plans garden tours in the spring & fall. These events range from nurseries specializing in palms, to private residences, and other locations of interest to palm enthusiasts.

SFPS’s (5) bimonthly meetings are open to non-members. The SFPS

holiday in

December

is free to members, and guests may attend for $10. The party has traditionally featured a pot luck dinner, live auction, and silent auction.

Palm shows / sales

are also coordinated along with traditional aspects of the Society. Thanks for your support, you mail sign up for the SFPS e-mail list at the bottom of this page, or via this

link

.

Attalea phalerata Photo: Joanna M. Tucker Lima, PhD

South Florida Palm Society (SFPS) E-mail list

* indicates required

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This page contained an index of links:

• Feb 5, 2022: SFPS General Meeting – FEB. 7th – “Updates on UF Palm Research” Dr. Mica McMillan
• Sep 15, 2021: SFPS General Meeting – Oct. 4th – “Investigating flower color change in Attalea palms” Dr. Joanna M. Tucker Lima
• Feb 11, 2021: SFPS Member Distribution – Feb. 20, 2021 @ Matheson Hammock Park

Help Save the Morningside Park Garden & Palmetum!

“Longtime SFPS & IPS member Elvis Cruz is the primary caretaker of the magnificent palmetum at Morningside Park in Miami, Florida.

This 3-acre garden was the defining element of the park’s original design in 1953.

However the palm garden was neglected over time

.

The South Florida Palm Society adopted this jewel in the rough, and there are now nearly 200 palms representing over 125 species.

The garden is enjoyed by the entire community. Elvis regularly conducts tours for school children and local horticulturalists.

Alarmingly the city is considering demolishing the ENTIRE garden.

”

A public meeting will be held to discuss the fate of the Morningside Park Palmetum. If you reside in the Miami area, please try to attend and help protect this public treasure.”

Monday, Nov. 29th, 2021, at 6pm

at the

Morningside Park community building:

750 NE 55 Terrace, Miami, FL 33137

For those of you who cannot attend in person, please consider expressing your support of the Morningside Park Palmetum

by emailing Miami City Commissioner Ken Russell:

KRussell@miamigov.com

This extract is replicated via the IPS – Volume 9.11 • Nov. 2021 • Newsletter of the International Palm Society.

One of the potential options the City of Miami is considering below.

One option takes out half the loop road, four parking lots, the entire palmetum (palm garden) and the restroom, all replaced by a grass playing field.

A second option, takes out much more of the loop road, four parking lots, the palm garden and the restroom, all replaced by a grass playing field.

Another adds an entrance road along the south side of the park to the boat ramp. It’s not clear if takes out any of the big banyan Ficus trees there now.

Some observations:

Financially wasteful

Both of these options would be very financially wasteful, as they would demolish existing, fully functioning facilities that the public has enjoyed since 1953, then rebuild some of them elsewhere in the park.

It’s a huge waste of money both coming and going. And what would it accomplish? The City would instead have a big, grassy open playing field.

But the park already has at least six open grassy areas where sports and games are played.

At least 219 trees would be removed

The plan would take out at least 219 trees. Seven of them are huge legacy trees, at least 70 years old, with trunk diameters from 3 to 5 feet.

Loss of convenience

No longer would we have the easy, convenient parking and picnicking situation we now enjoy along the perimeter of the loop road.

The City would instead build a large parking lot near the tidal basin, which would make for a long walk carrying picnic supplies to picnic areas around the southwest perimeter of the park.

Why take out the palm garden?

The palm garden is not only an oasis of beauty with picnic tables, it has an educational component, with its informative signage and educational tours given by the South Florida Palm Society, free of charge to any group, as part of their mission statement. They have given 31 educational tours so far.

The Palm Society has donated tens of thousands of dollars worth of palms, materials and labor to improve the palm garden the City had neglected. They’ve planted 123 palms and installed an irrigation system and identification signs.

Several South Florida Palm Society (SFPS) members have said that for the City to even consider removing the palm garden, after all they’ve done, is

“insulting”, “despicable” and “a slap in the face”

.

One said it’s a classic example of the old saying,

“No good deed goes unpunished.”

This proposal also seriously undermines the City’s credibility for future volunteer efforts or donations for City parks, especially from other plant societies and non profits.

Public opinion

Removing or relocating these facilities

goes against the 2,100 park users who signed hard copy petitions

to keep the park’s assets in place.

AN ON-LINE PETITION TO PRESERVE THE PARK’S ASSETS GATHERED 978 SIGNATURES.

A 58.82% majority of Morningside survey respondents

wanted the loop road left as is.

58.44% preferred

leaving the current mix of open green spaces and athletic uses left as is.

83.77% preferred

having various botanical societies assist with plants in the park.

Please attend the meeting on

Monday, November 29, 2021, at 6 pm

at the Morningside Park community building.

The park you save might just be your own.

About the Morningside Park

Palmetum…

Text & images from SFPS

Projects

Webpage

https://southfloridapalmsociety.org/projects/msp

Morningside Park

has featured this Palmetum since the park opened in

1953

. While a dozen or so of the original 1953 plantings remain, many palms were lost to attrition over time.

The South Florida Palm Society (SFPS)

, in agreement with the

City of Miami

, adopted the Palmetum and aspires to restore it to glory.

SFPS members engage in planting, irrigating, fertilizing, weeding, mulching and general maintenance of the palmetum, at no cost to the City. Rare palms have been donated by Fairchild Tropical Botanical Garden (

FTBG

), Montgomery Botanical Center (

MBC

), various commercial nurseries operated by SFPS members, and individual donations. The SFPS has also donated the identification signs for each palm, and gives educational tours of the Palmetum.

Biology students and garden club members of Morningside K-8 Academy, the local public school. The students and faculty enjoyed the tour and learned much about palms. SFPS member Elvis Cruz has conducted numerous tours of the Morningside Park Palmetum.

SFPS member Elvis Cruz has conducted numerous tours of the Morningside Park Palmetum.

A group of Boy Scouts and Cub Scouts participated in the Baynanza shoreline clean-up in Morningside Park, then enjoyed a BBQ picnic and a tour of the palmetum.

Not only are these tours an educational benefit for the public, they also help preserve and protect the Palmetum by giving it a social and educational value. The SFPS is a 501C3, with education as part of its mission statement. Tours are given free of charge to the public. Contact SFPSMiami@gmail.com to schedule a tour.

Currently displaying over 170 individual palms representing approximately 150 different species, with new plantings an ongoing endeavor, the Palmetum will become increasingly more beautiful over time.

The Palmetum is located in the middle of the loop road, towards the south end of the park. Visit Morningside Park at

750 NE 55th Terrace, Miami, FL 33137

, just east of Biscayne Boulevard.

SFPS General Meeting – October 4, 2021

Dr. Joanna M. tucker Lima (Living Collections Manager, Montgomery Botanical Center)

“Investigating flower color change in Attalea palms”

Attalea palms are known for their creamy-yellow colored flowers displayed within unisexual inflorescences, or sometimes in mixed bisexual inflorescences.

Attalea phalerata

presents a curious exception to this pattern, with its flowers – both staminate and pistillate – changing from creamy-yellow to magenta to purple over the course of three to four days. While color change is not unusual in the plant kingdom, flower color change in

A. phalerata

sparks multiple questions: Why is this the only Attalea species to display flower color change? What triggers the color change? What is the significance of color change in

A. phalerata

? Does flower color change attract or repel pollinators? The more than 30 specimens of

A. phalerata

at Montgomery Botanical Center present an ideal opportunity to study reproductive ecology in this species. On-going research at Montgomery is currently striving to uncover the significance of flower color change in this species.

Dr. Tucker Lima is the Living Collections Manager at Montgomery Botanical Center since 2016. Originally from Toledo, Ohio, she graduated with a PhD in Ecology from University of Florida in Gainesville. Since 1993 she has been involved with research and fieldwork in the Brazilian Amazon, studying both forest regeneration and palm ecology. Her interests lie in the reproductive ecology of palms and forest conservation.

October 4th, 2021, @ 7:00 PM Speaker @ 7:30 PM

Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden

South Gate, Garden House

Masks mandatory as per Garden policy.

General meetings are held on the

first Monday of February, April, June, August, and October

, with guest speakers at Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden’s Garden House, doors at 7:00 pm, business & speaker by 7:30 pm. Use the South Entrance and walk through the stone & iron gate.

SFPS meets on the first Monday of every even-numbered month.

Please

sign up to our e-mail

for updates and news.

The SFPS generally plans garden tours in the spring & fall. These events range from nurseries specializing in palms, to private residences, and other locations of interest to palm enthusiasts.

SFPS’s (5) bimonthly meetings are open to non-members. The SFPS

holiday in

December

is free to members, and guests may attend for $10. The party has traditionally featured a pot luck dinner, live auction, and silent auction.

Palm shows / sales

are also coordinated along with traditional aspects of the Society. Thanks for your support, you mail sign up for the SFPS e-mail list at the bottom of this page, or via this

link

.

Attalea phalerata Photo: Joanna M. Tucker Lima, PhD

South Florida Palm Society (SFPS) E-mail list

* indicates required

Email Address *

First Name *

Last Name *

SFPS General Meeting – August 2, 2021

BENJAMIN KOUBEK (SFPS Director, Corresponding Secretary)

“Using Palms Along Florida Roadways: A Landscape Inspectors Perspective”

Palms are a vital part of the landscape in Florida. They provide value in a variety of areas including aesthetics, wildlife, and even tourism. Please join us for a glimpse into how palms are designed, installed, and maintained along Florida’s roadways.

Benjamin Koubek is a certified landscape inspector, and municipal arborist with years of experience inspecting Florida landscapes. His presentation will feature a collection of palm photos as they are implemented along Florida roadways. Mr. Koubek, SFPS Corresponding Secretary, will reveal his unique perspective of using palms along public right-of-ways and public areas.

August 2nd, 2021, @ 7:00 PM Speaker @ 7:30 PM

Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden

South Gate, Garden House

Masks mandatory as per Garden policy.

General meetings are held on the

first Monday of February, April, June, August, and October

, with guest speakers at Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden’s Garden House, starting at 7:00 pm. Use the South Entrance and walk through the stone & iron gate.

SFPS meets on the first Monday of every even-numbered month.

Please

sign up to our e-mail

for updates and news.

The SFPS generally plans garden tours in the spring & fall. These events range from nurseries specializing in palms, to private residences, and other locations of interest to palm enthusiasts.

SFPS’s (5) bimonthly meetings are open to non-members. The SFPS

holiday in

December

is free to members, and guests may attend for $10. The party has traditionally featured a pot luck dinner, live auction, and silent auction.

Palm shows / sales

are also coordinated along with traditional aspects of the Society. Thanks for your support, you mail sign up for the SFPS e-mail list at the bottom of this page, or via this

link

.

South Florida Palm Society (SFPS) E-mail list

* indicates required

Email Address *

First Name *

Last Name *

SFPS General Meeting – June 7, 2021

Dr. Larry Noblick (Montgomery Botanical Center)

“An Ice Age Relic Palm in Arizona”

In the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge of Arizona, there is a relic population of Washingtonia growing in a remote narrow desert canyon surrounded by Sonoran Desert vegetation. Some scientists have dared to recognize it as a new species and others have dismissed the idea. In a recent study it was found to be an outlier from all others in the genus based on morphology. Is it a new species?

JUNE 7th, 2021, Check-in @ 7:00 PM

Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden

South Gate, Garden House

Temperature will taken at door. Waiver needs to be signed. Masks mandatory.

General meetings are held on the

first Monday of February, April, June, August, and October

, with guest speakers at Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden’s Garden House, starting at 7:00 pm. Use the South Entrance and walk through the stone & iron gate.

SFPS meets on the first Monday of every even-numbered month.

Please

sign up to our e-mail

for updates and news.

The SFPS generally plans garden tours in the spring & fall. These events range from nurseries specializing in palms, to private residences, and other locations of interest to palm enthusiasts.

SFPS’s (5) bimonthly meetings are open to non-members. The SFPS

holiday in

December

is free to members, and guests may attend for $10. The party has traditionally featured a pot luck dinner, live auction, and silent auction.

Palm shows / sales

are also coordinated along with traditional aspects of the Society. Thanks for your support, you mail sign up for the SFPS e-mail list at the bottom of this page, or via this

link

.

South Florida Palm Society (SFPS) E-mail list

* indicates required

Email Address *

First Name *

Last Name *

It’s time to go back…

The South Florida Palm Society (SFPS)

dates back to the very inception of the

International Palm Society (IPS)

. In fact, from the time

Dent Smith

founded The Palm Society in 1955 until 1982, the local group did not have a separate identity. Dent’s home, Daytona Beach, doesn’t possess the climate to support much palm diversity, so he made frequent trips to Miami to visit Fairchild Tropical Garden and local palm growers. In the first ten years of the IPS’s existence, many of its officers and directors were from southern Florida: They included luminaries such as

Dr. R. Bruce Ledin, Lucita Wait, Nat DeLeon, Dr. Harold ‘Hal’ Loomis, Nixon Smiley, Dr. John Popenoe, and Marian Bell Fairchild, wife of Dr. David Fairchild

. Notably 28 of the first 35 IPS members were Floridians, many of them lived in the southern end of the state.

The SFPS was chartered as a separate organization in 1982 in Miami. Meetings are held at Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden (FTBG) in Coral Gables, the very place where Dent Smith convened the organizational meeting of the IPS in 1956. The membership of the SFPS has historically been remarkably active both by volunteering for and funding projects to promote knowledge of and interest in palms. In recent years, the SFPS has contributed to the restoration of historic Virginia Key Beach Park and the palmetum at Miami’s

Morningside Park

. Members are quite collegial, and enjoy the rewards of a subtropical climate by regularly visiting outstanding public and private gardens.

Membership and all other inquiries:

https://southfloridapalmsociety.org/join/

To join the SFPS e-mail list sign up below:

South Florida Palm Society (SFPS) E-mail list

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First Name *

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South Florida Palm Society 2021 Plant Meetup

Save the date:

SFPS Member Distribution Meetup @ Matheson Hammock Park

February 20, 2021

(11:00 AM – 2 PM)

This socially distanced event will be geared towards encouraging SFPS members to bring any seeds, seedlings, or plants to contribute towards our raffles and auctions the day of the event.

Please wear a mask and stay safely distanced from others attending.

You are encouraged to bring a beach chair or towel to sit on and relax.

Members can also bring plants they would like to distribute as well. No RSVP is needed, but if you’d like to send any details about what you are bringing, please

send us

any info prior to the event.

The SFPS will not be catering food, but you can bring your own meal and water to consume on your own. Unfurtunately we do not encourage anyone bringing food items to share, as is usually done at our general meetings. Masks and social distance required to ensure the safety of all SFPS attendees.

If you would like to donate any plants but can’t attend the outing, please

contact

the SFPS to coordinate your donation. Please make sure all plants are properly identified, and if possible, tagged for the

SFPS Distribution Report.

The SFPS wants to thank Montgomery Botanical Center which has donated a special surprise palm

to be revealed

the day of the event which will be raffled.

Use the shared FTBG entrance not the beach road directly across the Old Cutler Hiking Trail lot. –

https://goo.gl/maps/5cmfxJfbqX8YJtYM7

Matheson Hammock Park,

109th & Old Cutler Road,

Coral Gables, FL 33156

Additional details will be sent

via e-mail

. (See map below)

“One of Miami-Dade’s most treasured county parks, Matheson Hammock Park, sits on a peninsula that extends into Biscayne Bay. The park spans 630 acres of coastal Miami just south of Coral Gables, surrounding parts of Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden. It first opened to the public in 1930, after William J. Matheson donated prime waterfront property to Miami-Dade County.” –

https://www.miamiandbeaches.com/thing-to-do/parks-recreation/matheson-hammock-park/4704

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Hemithrinax ekmaniana (Lollipop Palm)

PALM SALE AT UM HAS BEEN APPROVED FOR

MARCH 7 AND 8

February 2, 2026

.

General Meeting. Join us, as we travel with Horace Hobbs, long time palm enthusiast, as he explores northern Peru from the Amazon basin to the eastern slopes of the Andes, with intrepid members of the International Palm Society. Not to be missed! (Recognize this palm?)

Meeting begins at 7:00 pm at the Corbin “A” building (old parking lot) at Fairchild. It is pot luck, so please bring a dish to share. An auction will follow the presentations. We accept all plant donations, they don’t have to be palms.

February 14, 2026:

Yes, Valentine’s day! You can bring your sweetheart to Montgomery Botanical Garden on a guided tour of their incredible palm and cycad collection, but this doesn’t count for a Valentine’s day gift! Lunch included and it will be excellent.

March 7 and 8, 2026.

It’s a go! We will have our Annual Spring Palm Show and Sale at University of Miami, Coral Gables on Saturday March 7 and Sunday March 8. We will post a list of all species for sale about a week before the sale. See

Palm Sale webpage

.

Recent Past Events

December 1, SFPS Holiday Party with Tropical Flowering Tree Society, with a holiday feast, raffle, silent auction and live auction.

See link

.

November 8 and 9, SFPS Annual Palm Show and Sale, Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden.

November 1, 2025 Fall Garden Tour, Dr. Block’s Botanical Garden, Coral Gables, FL.

October 6, 2025 General Meeting: Dr. Patrick Griffith, Executive Director of Montgomery Botanical Center, presented “In Search of the World’s Largest Coconut on the Palmyra Atoll.”

See link

.

On June 14, 2025, a group of 13 volunteers from South Florida Palm Society, Treemendous and FIU, lead by Steve Pearson, planted 21 palms at the Palmetum located at campus of the University of Miami in Coral Gables.  The palms were donated mainly by Montgomery Botanical Center and Redland Nursery.  We are very grateful for the assistance of the volunteers and the palm donations.

See link

June 7, 2025,  General Meeting, Laz Priegues presented his trip to Mauritius, including one of the most beautiful botanical gardens in the world.

April 12, 2025,  Spring Garden Tour,  Mike Harris incredible backyard  landscape in Cooper City.

April 7, 2025,  General Meeting,

Understanding Peru from a Palm Perspective

,  by Chip Jones,  Jones Landscaping.

See Posting.

March 8 and 9, 2025 Spring Palm Sale, University of Miami Gifford Arboretum,

See posting.

Feb 3, 2025, General Meeting,

MBC Palm Expedition to Acre

, Brazil by Dr. Joanna Tucker Lima, Living Collections Manager and Botanist, Montgomery Botanical Center.

See posting.

Regular SFPS Activities

There are typically two garden tours each year, one in the spring and the other in the fall for SFPS members. Non-members can join the tour, but they must pay $15.00 each.

Meetings are held on the first Monday of the even-numbered months- February, April, June, August and October in the Corbin building at Fairchild Gardens. Meetings are open to non-members.

The December meeting is the Holiday Party and annual auction.  It is open only to members and their guests. At recent parties, we have invited members of the Tropical Flowering Tree Society to join us in the festivities. Attendees have an opportunity to outbid each  other for a prized plant (not necessarily a palm).

You may join the Society by clicking on the link below.

JOIN-MEMBERSHIP

SFPS is always looking for new ways to increase awareness and knowledge of palms in the landscape, botanical gardens and in the wild.  We have supported efforts by the Kiem Foundation, Morningside park palmetum and MetroZoo collection of palms.  We have added to the Palmetum at University of Miami in Coral Gables, FL in 2025 and hope to continue to expand their collection in 2026.

Any problems or incorrect information on this website, please contact the Webmaster at:

webmaster@southfloridapalmsociety.org

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Last Name *

Screenshot

Our Mission

The South Florida Palm Society (SFPS) is a not-for-profit organization whose mission is to disseminate information about and encourage interest in palms. The South Florida Palm Society uses its funds to help support local botanical gardens, individual scientific research expeditions or projects, conservation, planting projects and educational efforts. The horticultural society was reincorporated in 1982, but dates back to 1955.

General Meetings

We invite you to attend our society meetings held throughout the year, as well as our seasonal field trips to interesting palm gardens and habitats. The meetings are free and open to the public.

Our regular meetings are held in Room A of the Corbin Educational Building at Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, 10901 Old Cutler Road, Coral Gables, FL 33156 at

7:00 pm on the first Monday of every even-numbered month

.  (February, April, June, August and October).  The meetings include a guest speaker and an auction of donated plants, which are not exclusively palms or cycads.

Information about our meetings and other events can also be received free of charge. To be added to our email list please fill out

this form

.  To join the SFPS

click here

.

Garden Tours, Palm Sales and Holiday Party

We have a spring and fall garden tours.  Members can participate without charge.  Members’ guests must pay $15.00 to participate.  Prior garden tours have included nurseries, public gardens and private homes.

We generally hold a spring and fall palm sale.   We allow only palms and cycads to be sold.  Only SFPS members can sell plants. The sales offer a very diverse selection of species, and it is probably the largest sale of palms and cycads in South Florida.

The year ends with a post luck Holiday party, followed by an auction of donated palms. In past years, the Tropical Flowering Tree Society (TFTS) has joined us in our holiday party.  The joint holiday party has worked well for both societies.

Community Service Projects

We have special projects, to further increase awareness of palms in public spaces.  In June 2025, a group of volunteers planted 21 palms at the University of Miami in their Palmetum.   Volunteers also added new plant tags to the palms.   Other special projects are listed under

Projects

.

Privacy:

The SFPS cares about the information you provide us, and we respect and protect your online privacy. Absolutely no personal information is ever collected or maintained on this website. Separate from this website, the SFPS Secretary maintains an email mailing list for communicating with our members. This information is not shared with any third parties.

Hemithrinax ekmaniana

Contacts:

David.Lord@southfloridapalmsociety.org

Membership@southfloridapalmsociety.org

Secretary@southfloridapalmsociety.org

SFPS Board of Directors (2026):

President: David Lord

Vice President: Julio Alvarez

Treasurer: Karen Ann Bradley

Recording Secretary: Linda Talbott

Corresponding Secretary: Benjamin Koubek

Director: Harvey Bernstein

Director: Ellis Brown

Director: Lenny Goldstein

Director: Horace Hobbs

Director: Steve Pearson

Director: Clay Porch

Director: Lazaro Priegues, MD

Director: Mike Tevelonis

Director: Jeff Searle

Copernicia fallaensis & Coccothrinax borhidiana

Join our e-mail list to receive updates and meeting information below.

South Florida Palm Society (SFPS) E-mail list

* indicates required

Email Address *

First Name *

Last Name *

RENEWAL OF MEMBERSHIP:

If renewing the same membership,  go to the membership payment page.

Click here

.

NEW MEMBERS OR CHANGES TO MEMBERSHIP INFORMATION – please follow these 3 steps.

1. Please

fill out

this

digital form

and…

2.

To make a  payment,

click here

.

3.

Subscribe

to

our

e-mail list

to help the SFPS Secretary with confirmation of your subscription. –

https://southfloridapalmsociety.org/email

One-year memberships are valid for a full 12 months.  Similarly, two and three memberships are valid for 24 and 36 months, respectively. Lifetime membership is $500. Membership allows you admission to participate in the regular SFPS meeting, plant auctions and garden tours.  Corporate membership allows 2 officers and 6 guests of the corporation to attend any SFPS function at no charge.

Donations are always welcomed. Use the link below:

More information or questions? Or if prefer to pay by mail, please let us know.

palms@southfloridapalmsociety.org

Why contribute to the SFPS?

The South Florida Palm Society is a not-for-profit organization whose mission is to disseminate information about palms and encourage interest in palms and the use of those plants. Funds donated to the SFPS are used to help support local botanical gardens, botanical research, planting projects, and educational efforts.

SFPS Member Benefits

We offer our members numerous benefits. Part of your donations go to supporting worthy plant-related organizations. Those contributions & collaborations have included Montgomery Botanical Center, Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, TREEmendous Miami, and Zoo Miami.

The list below highlights a number of the benefits and opportunities you will enjoy as a member of the Society.

*

Participate in  private garden tours for free (members’ invited guests pay $15.00, RSVP required).

* Participate in (5) bimonthly plant auctions during our regular membership meetings

* Participate in December holiday party for free (members’ invited guests pay $15.00, RSVP required)

* Learn palm biology and horticulture from members & experts.

* Join a committee and volunteer to assist the SFPS Board.

Are you interested in palm identification, germination, propagation, and cultivation? Then you’re in the right place.

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Lodoicea maldivica

Help Save the Morningside Park Garden!

“Longtime SFPS & IPS member Elvis Cruz is the primary caretaker of the magnificent palmetum at Morningside Park in Miami, Florida. This 3-acre garden was the defining element of the park’s original design in 1953. However the palm garden was neglected over time. The South Florida Palm Society adopted this jewel in the rough, and there are now nearly 200 palms representing over 125 species. The garden is enjoyed by the entire community. Elvis regularly conducts tours for school children and local horticulturalists. Alarmingly the city is considering demolishing the ENTIRE garden.”

A public meeting will be held to discuss the fate of the Morningside Park Palmetum. If you reside in the Miami area, please try to attend and help protect this public treasure.”

Monday, November 29, 2021, at 6 pm,

at the Morningside Park community building:

750 NE 55 Terrace, Miami, FL, 33137

For those of you who cannot attend in person, please consider expressing your support of the Morningside Park Palmetum

by emailing Miami City Commissioner Ken Russell:

KRussell@miamigov.com

This extract is replicated via the IPS – Volume 9.11 • Nov. 2021 • Newsletter of the International Palm Society.

About the Morningside Park Palmetum…

Morningside Park

has featured this Palmetum since the park opened in

1953

. While a dozen or so of the original 1953 plantings remain, many palms were lost to attrition over time.

The South Florida Palm Society (SFPS)

, in agreement with the

City of Miami

, adopted the Palmetum and aspires to restore it to glory.

SFPS members engage in planting, irrigating, fertilizing, weeding, mulching and general maintenance of the palmetum, at no cost to the City. Rare palms have been donated by Fairchild Tropical Botanical Garden (

FTBG

), Montgomery Botanical Center (

MBC

), various commercial nurseries operated by SFPS members, and individual donations. The SFPS has also donated the identification signs for each palm, and gives educational tours of the Palmetum.

Biology students and garden club members of Morningside K-8 Academy, the local public school. The students and faculty enjoyed the tour and learned much about palms. SFPS member Elvis Cruz has conducted numerous tours of the Morningside Park Palmetum.

SFPS member Elvis Cruz has conducted numerous tours of the Morningside Park Palmetum.

A group of Boy Scouts and Cub Scouts participated in the Baynanza shoreline clean-up in Morningside Park, then enjoyed a BBQ picnic and a tour of the palmetum.

Not only are these tours an educational benefit for the public, they also help preserve and protect the Palmetum by giving it a social and educational value. The SFPS is a 501C3, with education as part of its mission statement. Tours are given free of charge to the public. Contact SFPSMiami@gmail.com to schedule a tour.

Currently displaying over 170 individual palms representing approximately 150 different species, with new plantings an ongoing endeavor, the Palmetum will become increasingly more beautiful over time.

The Palmetum is located in the middle of the loop road, towards the south end of the park. Visit Morningside Park at

750 NE 55th Terrace, Miami, FL 33137

, just east of Biscayne Boulevard. See map below: