Blue palm
Pinanga caesia

Family: Arecaceae

What it is like

A solitary palm. It grows 3-10 m tall. It is 8 cm across. The trunk is deep olive green. It has light brown wavy rings of leaf base scars. The leaf crown is half round. The crown-shaft can have blue or violet tones. It is 45 cm tall and bulges at the base. The leaf stalks are yellow or bluish. The leaves are 1.6-2 m long. They arch over slightly. The leaflets are dark green. They are regularly spaced and wedge shaped with jagged tips. The new growth is orange-brown. The flowering branches are light pink and turn red with time. The fruit are red and occur in clusters.

Where it is found

A tropical plant. It grows well in the tropics. It grows in secondary forests on hill slopes between 200-1,200 m above sea level. It grows in Sulawesi, Indonesia. In Cairns Botanical Gardens. In Townsville palmetum.

Countries/locations it is found in

Asia, Australia, Indonesia (country/location of origin), SE Asia

How it is used for food

The nut is sometimes used as a betel substitute.

Edible parts

Nuts - masticatory

How it is grown

Plants can be grown from seeds.

Its other names

Local names

Salak, Ridan

Synonyms

Pseudopinanga caesia (Blume) Burret; Ptychosperma caesia (Blume) Miq.; Seaforthia caesia (Blume) Mart.;