Queen Palm or Cocos plumosa
The standard urban palm throughout south Florida is the Queen Palm. Of the tribe Cocoeae, and subfamily Arecoideae it is also known as Cocos plumosa. It grows quickly, is bothered by few pests or diseases and is graceful in appearance. Queen palms are native from Southern Brazil to Argentina.
Common Name: Queen Palm or Cocos plumosa
Botanical Name: Syagrus romanzoffiana
Plant Type: Palm
Origin: Southern Brazil to Argentina
Height: 50′ or more
Rate of Growth: Medium to fast
Salt Tolerance: Medium
Soil Requirements: Slightly acid, well-drained
Water Requirements: Moderately drought tolerant
Nutritional Requirements: High, subject to manganese and potassium deficiency
Light Requirements: Full sun
Form: Solitary palm, canopy of 15 leaves
Leaves: Pinnately compound, reduplicate, arching; with several hundred many ranked, drooping leaflets in groups of 2-7. Color — Dark Green. 10-15′ long; leaflets 3′ long, 1.75″ wide.
Inflorescence: 4-8′ long, with conspicuous bract, borne from among the leaves, branched densely, the branches pendulous. Attracts bees.
Fruits: Yellow to orange, produced in copious quantities
Pests or diseases: Ganoderma, phytophthora bud rot
Uses: Specimen tree
Bad Habits: Fruit is messy and smells of fermentation when rotting. Weak-roots combined with a prodigious sail-like canopy makes it prone to topple in strong winds. Frizzletop a serious problem if not feed regularly especially on alkaline soils. Pollen hazard. Very quick growing, tall palm hard to prune. You will graduate from pole saw to ladder and pole saw to cherry picker in a few years.
Cost: $$ — reasonable
Propagation: Seed, germinates in 3-6 months
Sources (“As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.”): AMERICAN HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY A-Z ENCYCLOPEDIA OF GARDEN PLANTS, Betrocks Guide to Landscape Palms