Shingle Palm, Vertical

A small initial sprout expands into a broad leaf, which then falls over. A second sprout emerges from the bend, and expands into another leaf, which falls over next to the first. The process continues, and the leaves spiral and begin to stack in offset layers. Layers are consistent within a species, and may have 3, 4, 5, or 7 leaves per layer.   The stem diameter is usually in the 2-3 cm range, and the tip of the leaf reaches 20-40 cm above its tallest support. Overall diameter on the ground ranges from 40-50 cm for the smaller species to about a meter for the larger. Maximum height is seldom more than a meter for the smaller ones, and 3-4 meters for the larger.   The leaves have a significant central vein and lateral veins running out in parallel on either side. As each leaf falls, it hardens and turns woody, which provides more support for the successive vertical growth.   The stem never thickens, however, but remains the same throughout the life and height of the plant.

After a few layers of leaves, another step begins. When a leaf has finished its vertical development, before it falls over, a pollen-releasing structure forms at the tip.   Sometime thereafter, fruit buds form along the edge of the leaf, at the tips of some of the lateral leaf veins. There is no visible precursor structure that the fruits develop from.   Fruits are orange when they first appear, ripen to blue and purple, and then turn black when overripe. Their flavor is similar to raspberries, with an apple texture, softening to pear-like when overripe. Each fruit has a single seed at the base, where it attaches to the stem, about the size of a peach pit and scaling down.

Shingle palms are commonly found in forest understories, along borders, and isolated in grasslands.

Woody leaves are harvested by humans for use as shingles.