Trachycarpus princeps

Stone gate palm
Trachycarpus princeps

This is the first palm in our World of Palms glasshouse trail, that highlights 16 of the palms in our living collection at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh.

Native to south western China, where it occurs clinging to limestone cliff faces, this species has only been properly recognised relatively recently. Its classic fan-shaped leaves have a white waxy coating on the underside to minimise water loss in its very dry habitat; this gives the foliage its elegant blue-green colouration.

This rare palm takes its name from the Stone Gate, the local village name for the Chamutong Gorge section of the Salween River which plunges down from the Himalaya. It was first observed by an Austrian botanist in the 1930’s, but only re-discovered, classified and named in 1999.

This post is part of The World of Palms Glasshouse Trail