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| ## cabbage palmetto {#cabbage-palmetto .Title-Header}                 |
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| *Sabal palmetto* (Walt.) Lodd. ex J.A. & J.H. Schultes                |
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| Plant Symbol = SAPA                                                   |
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Contributed by: USDA NRCS National Plant Data Center & the Biota of
North America Program

### 

### Alternate Names

Palmetto, cabbage palm, cabbage tree, sabal palm, blue palm.

### Uses

*Ethnobotanic*: The Seminole, Houma, Choctaw, and other Native American
peoples in the southeastern United States used cabbage palmetto for a
wide variety of purposes. The white, crisp palm hearts were eaten either
raw or cooked by boiling or steaming. The leaf buds are purported to
taste like cabbage. However, both of these food uses\--the heart and the
buds\--result in the death of the plant. The palm fruits, which ripen in
the fall, are small and mostly seed, but they are sweet with a slight
bitter aftertaste. The seeds and berries were used for headaches and to
lower fevers. The plants provided fiber and wood used to construct
houses, make food paddles, drying frames for animal skins, potato drying
mats, fish drags, fish poison, ballsticks, arrows and hunting dance
staffs. Most Seminole homes were built from the cabbage palm. Logs would
be used as poles for the framework of huts that were thatched with the
fan-shaped leaves. Split logs were used for flooring. Immature fronds
were bleached in the sun, cut into strips, and plaited to make long
strips, which were used for lashing or sewn together to make baskets.
The stiff midribs of the leaves were sometimes used to construct ball
sticks or racquets. Palmetto-thatched houses may still be found in Houma
country in Louisiana.

*Wildlife*: Fruits ripen in the late fall and are eaten by crows,
mockingbirds, warblers, pileated and red-bellied woodpeckers and
squirrels. Palmetto fruits provide 10% to 25% of the diet of raccoons
and robins in the
Southeast.![](media/image2.jpeg){width="2.701388888888889in"
height="2.423611111111111in"}

### Status

Please consult the PLANTS Web site and your State Department of Natural
Resources for this plant's current status (e.g. threatened or endangered
species, state noxious status, and wetland indicator values).

### Description

*General*: Palm family (Arecaceae). Cabbage Palmetto is an evergreen
palm tree that can reach 20m in height. The erect, unbranched trunk has
grayish to brownish bark with distinctive pineapple-like markings where
the old leaf stalks were attached. Medium-green, stiff, fanlike leaves
are palmately compound and spread in all directions as they emerge from
the top of the trunk. The fans, often wider than they are long (2-3 m
wide), contain several long and pointed leaflets with prominent midribs.
During June and July, abundant, small (.5cm), fragrant, white flowers
are borne upon drooping, branched clusters. The berry-like fruits are
small (1.5cm), shiny and black. Each fruit contains one seed.

*Similar species:* The shrub-like, dwarf palmetto (*Sabal minor*) is
common to freshwater wetlands of the southeastern United States. The
leaves lack the prominent midrib and it usually does not grow a stem.

Distribution: Native to the Gulf Coast states and Florida. For current
distribution, please consult the Plant Profile page for this species on
the PLANTS Web site.

### Adaptation 

Cabbage palm grows in a wide variety of habitats in which the water
table is fairly close to the surface. It is found in the drier, upland
areas of both fresh and saltwater wetlands, wet hammocks, riverbanks,
seasonally wet prairies, maritime forests and coastal plains. In Florida
and across the gulf states, cabbage palmetto is commonly found in
transition zones between active floodplains and uplands. It also occurs
in maritime heath communities in the Carolinas and Virginia as well as
the hardwood upland hammocks communities of the Everglades.

### Establishment

Cabbage palmetto is widely planted for landscaping as an ornamental
because of its stately structure and large, graceful fan-shaped fronds.
It has a slow to moderate growth rate and is used for street trees as
well as for the patio or terrace. It can be grown in sun or in part
shade. The tree grows well in a wide variety of soils with medium to
poor drainage and fertility in both moist and fairly dry areas. It is
recommended for seaside plantings, as it is tolerant of salt. It is not
hardy in mountain areas as it is sensitive to cold.

*Propagation by seeds*: The trees may be easily propagated from seed, as
they germinate readily.

#### *Transplantings*: It is best to transplant cabbage palmettos in June or July. Seedlings can be transplanted the year following germination although larger plants transplant more easily. This is because increased food reserves stored in the main stem of larger transplants help in the regeneration of new roots. Tie the leaves together before transplanting to protect the terminal bud. After transplanting into a hole large enough to hold the roots, support the plant with stakes. It is necessary to water frequently until you can observe growth, to ensure proper establishment of the root system.

### Management

Established plants tend to self-sow. Fruit drupes may be removed if
self-sowing is not desired. The plant has no serious pests. Remove old
leaf bases to control their use as hiding places for roaches and other
insects.

### Cultivars, Improved and Selected Materials (and area of origin)

These plant materials are somewhat available from commercial sources.
Contact your local Natural Resources Conservation Service (formerly Soil
Conservation Service) office for more information. Look in the phone
book under "United States Government." The Natural Resources
Conservation Service will be listed under the subheading "Department of
Agriculture."

### References

Bailey, L.H. & E.Z. Bailey 1976. *Hortus Third: A concise dictionary of
plants cultivated in the United States and Canada*. Simon and Schuster
Macmillan Co., New York, New York. 1290 pp.

Barbour, M.G. & W.D. Billings, Editors 2000. *North American terrestrial
vegetation*, Second Edition. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge,
United Kingdom. 708 pp.

Brown, R.C. 1994. *Florida's first people: 12,000 years of human
history*. Pineapple Press, Inc., Sarasota, Florida. 262 pp.

Chapman, A.W. 1883. *Flora of the Southern United States: Flowering
Plants and Ferns*. Second Edition. J. Wilson and Son, Cambridge,
Massachusetts. 698 pp.

Flint, H.L. 1997. *Landscape plants for Eastern North America*. Second
Edition. John Wiley and Sons, New York, New York. 842 pp.

Godfrey, R.K. & J.W. Wooten 1979. *Aquatic and wetland plants of
Southeastern United States*. Vol. 1. University of Georgia Press,
Athens, Georgia. 712 pp.

Halfacre, R.G. & A. R. Showcroft 1979. *Landscape plants of the
Southeast*. Sparks Press, Raleigh, North Carolina. 325 pp.

Kniffen, F.B., H.F. Gregory & G.A. Stokes 1994. *The historic Indian
Tribes of Louisiana*. Louisiana State University Press, Baton Rouge,
Louisiana. 324 pp.

Martin, A.C., H.S. Zim & A.L. Nelson 1951. *American wildlife and
plants: A guide to wildlife food habits*. Dover Publications, New York.
500 pp.

Moerman, D.E. 1998. *Native American ethnobotany*. Timber Press,
Portland, Oregon. 927 pp.

Neill, W.T. 1956. *The story of Florida's Seminole Indians*. Second
Edition. Great Outdoors Publishing Co., St. Petersburg, Florida. 128 pp.

Ottesen, C. 1995. *The native plant primer*. Harmony Books, New York,
New York. 354 pp.

Palm & Cycad Societies of Florida 2000. *Sabal palmetto*. Accessed:
21May2001.
\<http://www.plantapalm.com/vpe/photos/Species/sabal_palmetto.htm\>

Rogers, D.J. & C. Rogers 1991. *Woody ornamentals for Deep South
gardens*. University of West Florida Press, Pensacola, Florida. 296 pp.

Small, J.K. 1933. *Manual of Southeastern flora*. University of North
Carolina Press, Chapel Hill, North Carolina. 1554 pp.

Sturtevant, W.C. 1954. *The Mikasuki Seminole: medical beliefs and
practices*. Doctoral Dissertation, Yale University. 538 pp.

Tiner, R.W. 1993. *Field guide to coastal wetland plants of the
Southeastern United States*. University of Massachusetts Press, Amherst.
328 pp.

Whitcomb, C.E. 1983. *Know it and grow it, II: A guide to the
identification and use of landscape plants*. Lacebark Publications,
Stillwater, Oklahoma. 740 pp.

### Prepared By

*Diana L. Immel*

Formerly USDA, NRCS, National Plant Data Center, c/o Environmental
Horticulture Department, University of California, Davis, California

### Species Coordinator

## *M. Kat Anderson*

USDA, NRCS, National Plant Data Center, c/o Plant Sciences Department,
University of California, Davis, California

Edited: 21May2001 jsp; 03jun03 ahv; 060816 jsp

For more information about this and other plants, please contact your
local NRCS field office or Conservation District, and visit the PLANTS
Web site\<[http://plants.usda.gov](http://plants.usda.gov/)\> or the
Plant Materials Program Web site
\<[http://Plant-Materials.nrcs.usda.gov](http://Plant-Materials.nrcs.usda.gov/)\>

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orientation, and marital or family status. (Not all prohibited bases
apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require
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large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA\'s [TARGET
Center](http://www.usda.gov/oo/target.htm) at 202-720-2600 (voice and
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*To file a complaint of discrimination write USDA, Director, Office of
Civil Rights, Room 326-W, Whitten Building, 14th and Independence
Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20250-9410 or call 202-720-5964 (voice or
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*Read about [Civil Rights at the Natural Resources Convervation
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