Arecaceae FAMILY

Serenoa repens

Edibility

2/5

Medicinal

3/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Botanical Description

Serenoa repens is an evergreen shrub that can grow up to 3.00 metres tall. The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a food, medicine and source of materials.

Habitat & Origin

Origintemperate

Native RangeSouth-eastern N. America - South Carolina to Florida, west to Arkansas.

HabitatLow pine woods, savannahs and thickets[ 222 Title A Field Guide to Medicinal Plants. Eastern and Central N. America. Publication Author Foster. S. & Duke. J. A. Publisher Houghton Mifflin Co. Year 1990 ISBN 0395467225 Description A concise book dealing with almost 500 species. A line drawing of each plant is included plus colour photographs of about 100 species. Very good as a field guide, it only gives brief details about the plants medicinal properties. ], where it often forms substantial thickets[ 200 Title The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. Publication Author Huxley. A. Publisher MacMillan Press Year 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5 Description Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed. ]. Also found on coastal sand dunes[ 231 Title Palms for Cooler Climates. Publication Author McMillan-Browse. P. Publisher Trebah Enterprises. Year 1993 ISBN 0 9521952 0 8 Description An excellent little booklet on the subject, though it does not mention many plant uses. ].