Is the "Diamond Joey" the "perfect"Palm? Let's see, hmmm!
© Paul T.Nawrocki
The Palm Family of Johannesteijsmannias
The Palms of the Month ! EDITION: MARCH, 2001:
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Is the "Diamond Joey" this "perfect", Palm lovers, or am I only DREAMING?" Your "WiseGardener" says: The "Diamond Joey", ah, Linneas-named: (Johannesteijsmannia Altifrons)!!, just MIGHT be that little bit of Palm Perfection!! Here's why I think so, friends:
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LOOK RIGHT on this very page!! Unbelievable beauty in a palm specimen, I readily feel, friends!! The Diamond "Joey" features an incredibly enormous, tough, lush diamond-shaped frond that is very striking, indeed!
Johannesteijmannia palms lack a visible stem, except in J. perakensis, which develops a short trunk. Short stems may, however be underground. Leaves are at least 3 m (10 ft.) long, at maturity, and in exceptional cases, twice that length. Leaf sheaths are short and break down into a fibrous interwoven mass as they age. Petioles, armed with small and sharp spines, are continuous with the leaf midrib and there is a small hastula on the upper surface of the young leaves at the insertion of the blade on the petiole. The beautiful leaf blade is entire, pleated, ribbed, and ranges from diamond-shaped to broadly lanceolate. The upper margins of the leaves are notched in a step-like fashion and the lower margins are thickened and armed with teeth-like spines similar to those on the petiole margin. Inflorescences arise among the leaves. The cream-coloured scented bisexual flowers are solitary or arranged in groups of two, or four. Seeds are globose, and attached at the base.
Well-drained soil and shade are two consistent requirements for these magnificent understorey palms! Best suited to frost-free humid tropics, they can be grown, also in a simulated tropical climate. Flowering and fruiting are apparently irregular and sporadic. Fresh seed germinates readily and the seedlings' growth is relatively fast if the climate and the soil are favourable.
The Diamond "Joey" and the other members of the Johannesteijsmannia family of palms is a totally unique "jewel", perhaps I dare say, even the crown jewel, in the Palm World...It readily deserves the Palms-of-the-Month Award, from TWG, this March, 2001!
Paul, "The Wise Gardener!"
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