Home And Garden

Common Names:  kentia palm, sentry palm, thatch palm, paradise palm, hotel palm, parlor palm Family:   Arecacea/Palmae  (palm Family) Description Kentia palm is highly prized for its elegant fronds and slender trunk. Kentia palm has a canopy of about three dozen gracefully drooping leaves which produce an airy and poised look. The leaves are pinnate (featherlike) and grow up to 12 ft (3.7 m) long with thornless 4-5 ft (1.2-1.5 m) petioles (leaf stems). The leaflets are like fingers, 2.5 ft (0.8 m) long and 2 in (5 cm) wide; they bend downward in a graceful fashion. Kentia palm leaflets are dark green on top and lighter green on the bottom. The mature spread ranges from 10-20 ft (3-6 m) across, and the height may range from 15-30 ft (4.6-9 m), and can reach 60 ft (18.3 m). The trunk is swollen at the base and has slightly raised annular trunk rings. The kentia palm produces an inflorescence about 3.5 ft (1.1 m) long which consists of white flowers on 3-7 spikes which ar...

Common Names:  English ivy Family:   Araliaceae  (ginseng Family) Description Actually classified as a high climbing shrub, English ivy is considered by everybody - except taxonomists - to be a clinging vine with aerial rootlets to anchor it! There are many leaf forms, most of which have 3 to 5 lobes. Leaves may be widely different shades of green or have striking yellow or white variegation (the variety ‘Green Arrow’ is pictured). Quite old, mature ivy makes flowering shoots whose leaves are not lobed at all but oval. Flowers are small and inconspicuous, followed by black berries that are poisonous. Location Native to Europe; now naturalized throughout the globe, except for the tropics. Culture Although Hedera is quite adaptable, it grows fastest and thrives best in rich, moist soil, which can be either acid or alkaline. Somewhat salt tolerant, too. Ivy does like good air circulation and drainage to avoid fungus. Light:  Part sun to shade. Moisture: ...