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Meet the Natives: Saw Palmetto
Meet the saw palmetto (Serenoa repens), a slow-growing, salt-tolerant member of the palm family, Arecaceae.
Saw palmetto grows naturally all over Florida in dense thickets on sand dunes and other coastal areas, and as an understory plant in hardwood hammocks and pine flatlands.
“It has two varieties: silver, and green, with the silver variety being slightly faster growing and more associated with the east coast,” said SCCF Native Landscapes & Garden Center Intern Hadas Hacohen.
Both varieties will usually get up to 8 feet tall by 6 feet wide, and are an excellent option for planting in a variety of soils, as they are salt-tolerant and drought-tolerant, but can also be happy in moister soils that experience occasional and brief inundation.
Saw palmetto can thrive in full sun to part shade, and are rarely bothered by pests.
“The berries of the saw palmetto are an important source of food for wildlife, as many species of birds, mammals, and reptiles will use it both for food and cover,” Hacohen said.
Its long stems full of flowers also offer nectar for many butterflies, including the Bartram’s scrub-hairstreak and the atala butterflies, while the plant itself is the host for monk skipper and palmetto skipper caterpillars.
Though slow-growing, saw palmetto can last for a long time. In undisturbed sites, branches have been found that are over one hundred years old, while specimens have been found growing that are the clones of plants from over 5,000 years ago.
“Though the stalks of its fronds can be spiky, don’t let its intimidating name scare you away,” Hacohen said. “Saw palmetto is a striking, salt-tolerant, and pollinator and wildlife-friendly addition to any garden.”
Purchase saw palmetto at SCCF’s Native Landscapes & Garden Center, located at 1300 Periwinkle Way.