Species · genus Phoenix · Arecaceae

Pygmy Date Palm

Phoenix roebelenii O'Brien

Also known as: Dwarf Date Palm · Miniature Date Palm · Roebelin Palm

Growth habit

shrub

Native range

China South-Central, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam

Reference · P. roebelenii

Cultivars of P. roebelenii

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

No named cultivars catalogued under P. roebelenii 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.

Phoenix roebelenii is a small palm native to riverbanks and forest margins across Southeast Asia and south-central China, so it favors warmth and steady but not soggy moisture. Give it bright indirect light, and water when the top inch or two of mix has dried, allowing the surface to approach dryness between waterings; it tolerates short dry spells better than wet roots. It can take some direct sun once established, but indoors a bright spot out of harsh midday rays is the safe choice.

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

15–30 °C

Soil mix

Fast-draining loamy mix with sand and perlite

Propagation

Seed, or separation of basal suckers

Fertilizing

Balanced palm feed monthly in spring and summer

Growth rate

Slow

Flowering

Rarely flowers indoors

ToxicityAuthoritative · species

Not yet documented

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

Kept true by its growers

Every fact here carries its source. Grow Pygmy Date 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.