Species · genus Chamaedorea · Arecaceae

Parlor Palm

Chamaedorea elegans Mart.

Also known as: Good-luck Palm · Neanthe Bella Palm · Parlour Palm

Growth habit

shrub

Native range

Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico Central, Mexico Gulf, Mexico Northeast, Mexico Southeast, Mexico Southwest

Reference · C. elegans

Cultivars of C. elegans

The named forms growers keep — each with its own page, each honest about how much we know.

No named cultivars catalogued under C. elegans yet. When growers document a stable, named form, it earns its own page here.

Guide

The species-level account. Cultivar pages build on this and say where they differ.

Chamaedorea elegans is a small understory palm from the humid forests of Mexico and Central America, where it grows in dappled shade beneath the canopy. Give it bright indirect light away from direct sun, and water when the top inch of mix has dried, keeping the soil lightly moist but never soggy. It tolerates ordinary household humidity but appreciates a more humid spot if you can offer one.

Care recipe

The species record — the baseline every cultivar inherits unless it says otherwise.

Care notes are early — not yet verified

Light: ai:claude-opus-4-8
Water: ai:claude-opus-4-8 (range 7-12d)
Humidity: ai:claude-opus-4-8
Soil: ai:claude-fable-5
Care: ai:claude-fable-5

Light

Bright, indirect

Water

≈ every 12 days

Humidity

Medium

Temperature

16–27 °C

Soil mix

Peat-based mix that stays lightly moist yet drains

Propagation

From seed only; does not clump or divide

Fertilizing

Dilute balanced feed monthly in the growing season

Growth rate

Slow

Flowering

Sprays of tiny yellow flowers appear even indoors

ToxicityAuthoritative · species

Non-toxic to cats & dogs

Parlor palm (Chamaedorea elegans) — ASPCA non-toxic; palms carry no toxic principle. This is where toxicity lives: every cultivar of this species inherits it and none can override it.

Reference images

Every image credited. Licenses link to their deeds.

No reference gallery yet

A few clear photos — habit, a mature leaf, a flower if it blooms — would give this page its eyes.

Add images

Sources: ai:claude-opus-4-8 · ai:claude-opus-4-8 (range 7-12d) · ai:claude-fable-5 · ASPCA

Kept true by its growers

Every fact here carries its source. Grow Parlor Palm yourself? What you’ve observed — how it drinks, how it holds its color, a name that’s off — is exactly what keeps this page honest. Contributions are reviewed before anything changes.