Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-09-18
Saks and Company, Pa. Ave. & 9TH St.
RARE PALM IN BLOOM
Specimen from the Seychelle Islands
Now at New York Botanic Garden.

Now at New York Botanic Garden.
From the New York Times
In the large palm house of the New York
Botanical Gardens in Bronx Park there is
now on exhibition, in all the glory and
beauty of full bloom, one of the rarest and
most valuable plants in the world. Not onIy
is IL exceptional in being the largest and
hnest plant of its kind shown in any con-
servatory, but it is the only one of it's spe-
cies (Phoenicophorium sechellarum) ever
known to have been coaxed into flower I'M
der cultivation.
Surrounded by palms from tropical climes the
world over, it stands out in stately magnif-
cence in comparison with it's neighbors. The
palm, standing sixteen feet above it's tub,
has stately crown of nine broad feather
edged leaves. The blooms forcing their
way up through the trunk at the parting
of the leaf stems, spread out into large,
bright yellow pancles Of flowers
The flowers are arranged In groups of
three, the two lateral ones being staminate
and the central one pistillate. After the
lateral flowers fall away the central or pis-
tlllate flower develops into it's full beauty.
Inc PAIN is very rare, specimens Of 1t
being found In but few European institu-
lions, and only one or two others are known
to exist in this country, and those can in
no way compare with the palm at the New
York Botanical Gardens in size or perfec-
ton. A specimen as large as this is very
valuable, and the authorities of the botani-
cal gardens considered themselves quite for
tunate when, through the generosity of Mrs.
F. L. Ames of North Easton, Mass, this
palm came into their possession
The plant had not done well In the con-
serVatory of Mrs. Ames 1t being impossible
to give it the high temperature it, as a ma
tive of equatorial ATTITUDES required. for its
neighbors in the same house were from
many and varied climates, and the wei
rare OF the majority had to be considered
But since Its arrival at the gardens in the
Bronx, and its installation in the large palm
mouse, where it has been possible to cater
to Its special needs, it has responded most
gratefully to it's improved environment
Upon its arrival at the gardens 1t had hut
-FOUR leaves, and was not as tall by some
inches, 1t measuring now sixteen feet from
the top of Its tub to the uttermost tip of its
top branch, and it boasts of nine mature
and perfect leaves.
The plant was originally procured in the
Seychelle. Islands, a small group in the In
dlan ocean, east of Central Africa Con-
nected with 1t there is pretty little legend
current among the native islanders. indica-
tive of the veneration and regard they hold
Tor the plant. The legend runs that. after
the creatNpn, a bird Of immense size few
from the earth to the sun at so great
speed that 1t lost one of it's feathers This
1eather Heated around In space for MANY
ages, and at last fell to the earth on one
or the Seychelle Islands. Finding there q
Iertiie SOIL, 1t took root and grew into a
stately palm, the large entire leaves Of
which resemble the feathers of that i'm
mehse pird SO long since passed away