Description:

This solitary or clustering variety makes a beautiful accent plant; cut suckers away to maintain a single trunk; will slowly mature into a medium height palm; great tropical accent for patio planters

Ornamental Features

Mountain Date Palm is primarily grown for its highly ornamental fruit. The fruits are showy blue drupes with black overtones, which are carried in abundance in mid fall. The fruit can be messy if allowed to drop on the lawn or walkways, and may require occasional clean-up. It has attractive bluish-green deciduous foliage. The narrow pinnately compound leaves are highly ornamental but do not develop any appreciable fall color. It has panicles of yellow flowers held atop the branches in mid summer. The rough khaki (brownish-green) bark adds an interesting dimension to the landscape.

Landscape Attributes

Mountain Date Palm is a multi-stemmed deciduous shrub with a towering form, with a high canopy of foliage concentrated at the top of the plant. Its relatively fine texture sets it apart from other landscape plants with less refined foliage.

This shrub will require occasional maintenance and upkeep, and should not require much pruning, except when necessary, such as to remove dieback. It has no significant negative characteristics.

Mountain Date Palm is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Accent
• Hedges/Screening
• Windbreaks and Shelterbelts
• Container Planting

Planting & Growing

Mountain Date Palm will grow to be about 20 feet tall at maturity, with a spread of 10 feet. It has a low canopy with a typical clearance of 4 feet from the ground, and is suitable for planting under power lines. It grows at a slow rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for 60 years or more. This is a dioecious species, meaning that individual plants are either male or female. Only the females will produce fruit, and a male variety of the same species is required nearby as a pollinator.

This shrub does best in full sun to partial shade. It does best in average to evenly moist conditions, but will not tolerate standing water. It is not particular as to soil type or pH. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution. This species is not originally from North America.

Mountain Date Palm makes a fine choice for the outdoor landscape, but it is also well-suited for use in outdoor pots and containers. Because of its height, it is often used as a 'thriller' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination; plant it near the center of the pot, surrounded by smaller plants and those that spill over the edges. It is even sizeable enough that it can be grown alone in a suitable container. Note that when grown in a container, it may not perform exactly as indicated on the tag - this is to be expected. Also note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.