the genus
BUTIA

From a native name “butia” in South America

Subfamily: Arecoideae
Tribe: Cocoeae
Subtribe: Butiinae

The subtribe includes 9 related genera such as Cocos, Jubaea, Parajubaea, Syagrus, etc.

An intriguing genus of pinnate-leaved palms, for the most part highly tolerant of drought and cold. At least three of the species are fairly common in gardens: B. capitata, B. eriospatha, and B. yatay; all are hardy to about 100F (-120C). The species of Butia inhabit grasslands (pampas) and semi-arid savannahs or thorn forests (cerrado) from southern Brazil through Paraguay, Uruguay, and northeast Argentina, usually on sandy soils or red clays of an acid pH. Butia palms make especially decorative garden trees, with diamond-shaped markings created by the persistent leaf bases, which may be trimmed to reveal a pineapple-like pattern. Although compact enough for small courtyard gardens and large containers, with age the trees can assume majestic proportions. Butia palms display tremendous originality in form and may produce foliage that swirls to the right or to the left, approaches near green in color, or tends to a striking silver-gray. The crowns may be open and spreading, or tightly recurved and densely spaced. Their colorful fruits appear in large clusters at various times of the year and usually ripen to shades of red, orange, or yellow. They are rich in vitamin C, with a sweet, exotic flavor attractive to scarlet macaws and other wildlife, and popular for making jellies and preserves. Where they occur together, Butia species sometimes cross with Syagrus romanzoffiana to create the rare hybrid palm, X Butiagrus nabonnandii.

Culture: Butia species accept sun or light shade and will tolerate drought. Good drainage is essential.

Butia capitata
Common Name: Pindo Palm, Jelly Palm
Cold Tolerance: 10F (-12C) USDA Zones: 8-10b

Typical Height: 15' Growth Rate: Slow
Habit: Solitary; canopy of 40–50 leaves

Status: In Stock
Available Range: 15–300gal. B&B 1’–20’CT

Butia eriospatha
Common Name: Woolly Butia Palm
Cold Tolerance: 10F (-12C) USDA Zones: 8-10b

Typical Height: 15' Growth Rate: Slow
Habit: Solitary

Status: Available
Available Range: 100–300gal. B&B 1’–20’CT

Butia yatay
Common Name: Yatay Palm
Cold Tolerance: 10F (-12C) USDA Zones: 8-10b

Typical Height: 25' Growth Rate: Slow
Habit: Solitary; canopy of 40–50 leaves

Status: In Stock
Available Range: 45–300gal. B&B 2’–8’CT

Other species of Butia:
B. archeri, B. campicola, B. microspadix, B. paraquayensis, B. purpurascens
(on request)

X Butiagrus nabonnandii
A name created from a combination the parent genera, Butia and Syagrus. The species name honors Paul Nabonnand, a French horticulturist, who first reported the hybrid in the early 1900’s.

Synonyms: Syagrus X fairchildianae

The Mule Palm, X Butiagrus nabonnandii, is one of the most beautiful of all the frost-hardy pinnate-leaved palms. Its rarity and useful size make it a treasure for warm climate gardens, bringing coconut-like lushness to areas where the frost-tender true coconut (Cocos nucifera) would not prosper. Although nurseries and palm fanciers may deliberately create the cross, as Paul Nabonnand did early in the 20th century, these rare trees more often arise as accidental hybrids among seedlings planted where their parents (a Queen Palm, Syagrus romanzoffiana, and a Pindo Palm, Butia capitata) occur near one another. Young Mule Palms usually grow at a rapid pace and, when established, can be expected to survive low temperatures to near 140F (-100C) or as low as 100F (-120C), depending on the individual tree and its unique inheritance. Although compact enough for small courtyard gardens, with age the Mule Palm assumes majestic proportions, and in clusters or pairs will produce gracefully curving trunks and lush crowns reminiscent of the Coconut. Horticultural Consultants Inc. offers numerous specimens of unique and carefully prepared X Butiagrus nabonnandii ideal for avenues, group plantings, or any landscape purpose.

Culture: X Butiagrus nabonnandii thrives in sun or light shade and will tolerate drought. The trees exhibit hybrid vigor and tolerate a range of soil types from clay to sand. As with most palms, good drainage is most important.

Common Names: Mule Palm, Butia Queen Cross
Cold Tolerance: 140F (-100C). Some trees have withstood temperatures as low as 100F (-120C) USDA Zones: (8b) 9-11

Typical Height: 30' Growth Rate: Fast
Habit: Solitary

Status: In Stock
Available Range: 7–300gal. B&B 3’–20’CT

*Horticultural Consultants, Inc. (HCI) has one of the largest collections of Butia Queen–Crosses in one location in the world!