Statue of Unity – Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat Rain Forest Ektanagar

Bismarckia nobilis

Syn. Medemia nobilis

IUCN Red List Least Concern (LC)

Local name

  • Bismarck Palm (English)
  • Silver Bismarck Palm (English)
  • Satrana (Malagasy)

Tree type

Evergreen Deciduous
Family: Arecaceae
10m

Indicated uses

Medicinal Edible Ornamental Avenue Other

Flowering & fruiting

Flowering Fruiting

Key characters

Bismarckia nobilis bark

Bark

Trunk single, grey to tan, slightly swollen at the base, ringed with old leaf scars; young plants retain split old leaf bases in a criss-cross pattern.

Bismarckia nobilis leaves

Leaves

Leaves are very large, stiff, fan-shaped (costapalmate), up to 3 m across, usually silvery blue-grey with a waxy bloom (a green form also exists); leaf stalks edged with small sharp teeth.

Bismarckia nobilis flower

Flower

Dioecious: male and female flowers on separate plants. Flowers small, brownish to cream, on pendulous inflorescences among the leaves.

Bismarckia nobilis fruit / seeds

Fruit / Seeds

Female plants bear clusters of ovoid, brown drupes, about 3–4 cm in diameter, each with one seed.

Bismarckia nobilis

Did you know?

The genus is named after Otto von Bismarck, the first Chancellor of the German Empire, and has only this one species. Its silvery colour comes from a wax coating on the leaves. In Madagascar its pith is sometimes eaten and its wood is used as timber.

Distribution

World map showing distribution

N. & W. Madagascar, Comoros.