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NOVEMBER 2011

November 2011
Meeting: 2pm Sunday November 13th, 2011 Las Vegas Springs Preserve 333 S. Valley View Blvd Las Vegas, NV 89107

CALENDAR
November 13th Presentation: Presentation by Donnie Barnett December: Holiday Dinner Party - Date, Time & location TBD

Please bring plants for the raffle!!!

The Deserts North of The Colorado River
This presentation will be a travel log of places I've visited over the last few years. Composed of micro-trips taken across the Northern Mojave, Colorado Plateau, and Great Basin, this gives people a chance to view part of the local Great American Southwest.

A Primer on Palms Vicki Yuen True palm trees are not succulents, but many people who grow cactus and succulents in their gardens also have palms, as the two plant groups prefer similar climates. This is written to familiarize you with the palms we have at the Springs Preserve. Examples of all these palms (as well as a few other less common ones) can be found in the Palm Grove, at the east end of the Gardens. There are two basic types of palm fronds. Palms are essentially divided between the two types: Palmate fronds are shaped like a fan (palm of your hand). Many of these palm trees have the name "Fan" in them. Pinnate fronds are shaped like a feather. The date palms are in this group. PALMATE California Fan Palm (Washingtonia filifera) - This, and the Mexican Fan Palm (Washingtonia robusta), are some of the most common types of palms in Las Vegas. They are the only two members of their genus, and are similar except in height and thickness of trunk. The California Fan Palm has the thicker trunk and can grow to 50 feet tall, but this is only about half the height of the Mexican Fan Palm. They can both get cottony threads on their fronds. (We have only the California Fan Palm in the Garden, though you can see many tall Mexican Fan Palms in surrounding neighborhoods.) European Fan Palm (also called Mediterranean Fan Palm) (Chaemerops humilis) - This palm is usually a multi-trunk palm that makes a nice mound, up to ten feet tall. It is often seen in gardens as an accent plant. The fronds are much more delicate than the California and Mexican Fan Palms. Blue Hesper Palm (Brahea armata) has large stiff blue-green leaves. The petioles (stems) on the fronds have very large, sharp teeth. These can grow to 30 feet high, though the ones in our LVSP Gardens are only about ten feet tall now. Chinese Windmill Palm (Trachycarpus fortunei) is a slender, smallish palm with matted fibers on the trunk. Its fronds are small, similar to the European Fan Palm. The Windmill Palm is usually a singletrunk palm. PINNATE Canary Island Date Palm (Phoenix canariensis) is a large, formal palm which is often trimmed to have a "pineapple" top protecting the meristem (the palm heart, where growth occurs). It has long spines on its petioles, and very long fronds. Blue Date Palm (Phoenix dactylifera) is often grown for its edible dates. The trunk is thinner than the Canary Island Date Palm, and usually looks bumpier. Pindo Palm (Butia capitata) is a smaller palm with graceful arching fronds. We have one near the entrance to the Gardens, and another at the back of the Palm Grove.

Contact Information
President: Donnie Barnett Rakkasanenterprisez@GMAIL.com Vice President: Vicki YuenYuenvicki@hotmail.com Secretary: Ramona Lesley Ramonadl@aol.com Treasurer: Phil LawtonCoachpcl@gmail.com Membership/website: Jay NietlingJay.nietling@gmail.com

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