Jubaea chilensis (Chilean Wine Palm, Coquito Palm)

Chilean Wine Palm, Coquito Palm
Scientific Name: Jubaea chilensis (Molina) Baillon
Synonym: Jubaea spectabilis
Jubaea chilensis

Size: up to 25m (80') tall 16 feet in diameter (5 m)
Min. Temperature: 16°F (-9°C)
Water Requirements: Moderate water
Sun Requirements: Full sun to light shade
Origin: Chile
Germination: slow to germinate, usually taking between 6 to 16 months.
Leaf: Pinnate, stiff feather leaves, which are dull green above and greyish underneath, up to 12 feet long (3.6 m).
Trunk: Gray trunk with leaf scars, Up to 1.5m (5') wide.
Flower: Large number of very small purple flowers. Flowers are in groups of 2 males flowers for 1 female.. Flower stalk coming from among the leaves, 4 feet long.
Fruit: yellow. Up to 2 inches in diameter (5 cm). round.
Seed: 1 inch in diameter (2.5 cm). round.

The Chilean Wine Palm is cold resistant, but doesn't care much for heat. It does well in many part of California, but doesn't do well in Florida or Arizona.
The wine is made from the sap of the tree. The extraction of the sap kills the tree, and the Wine Palm is now rare and protected in Chile.
The fruit is sweet and edible. The seed is also edible. It is hollow, and look and taste like a miniature coconut.
The Wine Palms drop their leaves naturally, so it is generally not necessary to trim them.

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