Trachycarpus wagnerianus - Dwarf Chusan Palm

Trachycarpus wagnerianus, also known as the Dwarf Chusan Palm, is an impressive Asian palm, even hardier than its famous cousin, Trachycarpus fortunei. As elegant but more compact than the latter, this variety is well suited for small gardens and terraces. A captivating plant, it bears a highly ornamental appearance. Its stiffer, more compact, and smaller leaves, give it a bonsai-like look, and adds a touch of exoticism to any flowerbed. 

Trachycarpus wagnerianus belongs to the family of Arecaceae. This shrubby plant is not known in the wild, but it has been cultivated for a long time in Japan, where its origins are lost. The English botanist Robert Fortune brought back seeds to Europe around 1850. It might be a subspecies of Trachycarpus fortunei. This particularly resistant evergreen palm adapts to all climates, whether they are cold temperate or subtropical and dry.

From a young age, this palm shows a very balanced habit, and its deep green leaves bordered with white are beautiful. It grows slowly when young (the first 4 or 5 years), reaching a height of 3 m to 4 m (9.8 ft to 13.1 ft) at the age of 12, when planted in the ground. Its vegetation consists of a narrow false trunk (stipe) at the base, covered with a mass of fibres and foliar scars in the upper part, carrying a very compact crown made up of about twenty fan-shaped leaves. These leaves, borne on petioles 50 cm to 60 cm (19.7 in to 23.6 in) long, are deep green, clear, very vibrant, rigid and strongly palmate, and do not exceed 60 cm (23.6 in) in diameter. An adult plant will flower in June-July. The flowers, cream-coloured in females and bright yellow in males, are carried by branched inflorescences that emerge from between the leaves. This species is dioecious: each individual is either male or female. Only female plants bear clusters of small black-blue fruits, containing a black seed at ripeness.

This dwarf palm is, along with the Chamaerops humilis, one of the easiest to acclimate in many regions. In the ground, it can be placed in isolation, not far from a swimming pool for example, along with Tetrapanax Rex, banana trees, or yuccas, in an exotic-inspired setting. But this variety reveals its full potential when planted in isolation or in a large rockery. A bit difficult to plant with others, it can nevertheless be planted in groups of 3 individuals and surrounded by a carpet of cistus, a sowing of purslanes, or a blanket of Felicia. Plant it in a contemporary garden above a tide of white pebbles. It will make a magnificent specimen on a terrace or balcony, planted in a carefully chosen large container.