Sabal minor contains many cold hardy cultivars that are popular in southern landscapes. Below is a discussion of this important species.
Sabal minor (Dwarf Palmetto) This native to the southeastern US can be found from North Carolina south to Florida and west to Texas. Unlike S. palmetto, S. minor forms an underground trunk that can grow 5 ‘deep, which accounts for its incredible winter hardiness. Interestingly, I have found two wild S. minor specimens off the coast of South Carolina with logs above ground and Gary Hollar has found the same elsewhere in South Carolina. We do not know if these are true caulescent (trunk) forms or if the subterranean trunk reached a point where its trunk could no longer grow in its natural downward direction. It will be interesting to see if these come true from seed. There are a number of named seed cultivars, each of which represents a specific genetic form or population.
S. minor ‘Bear Creek’ (Bear Creek Dwarf Palmetto) I was very surprised to see this westernmost population of S. minor in 2003 in Kendall County, Texas, near the famous town of Luckenbach (north of San Antonio). Here S. minor grew along a stream that was often flooded under a giant bald cypress, which was in a steep valley below the dry desert. The leaflets of the palms seemed a bit narrower and the leaves more costapalmate (folded in the center) than I remembered in other S. minor. In addition, several of the plants had more than 1 ‘of trunk above the ground. The very upright 7 ‘tall flower spikes were much taller than I normally see in the east. (Resistance zone 7b-10)
S. minor ‘Blountstown Dwarf’ (Blountstown Dwarf, Dwarf Palmetto) These are seedlings of a very dwarf form of S. minor found in Blountstown, Florida (west of Tallahassee), which were shared with us by palm guru Sabal , Dr. Kyle Brown from Florida. The mother plant matures to 18 “tall … a rock garden palm! We can’t promise that each will be as dwarf as the mother, but so far, this seems to be the case. (Hardiness zone 7b-10 )
S. minor ‘Castor Dwarf’ (Castor Dwarf, Dwarf Palmetto) When we were botanizing near the town of Castor in Bienville Parish, Louisiana, in mid-March 2004, we found a roadside population of S. minor dwarf congested with very narrow leaves. segments. There were several dozen plants in the population and they all seemed to have the same habit. (Resistance zone 7b-10)
S. minor ‘Emerald Island Giant’ (Emerald Island Dwarf Palmetto) These extraordinary S. minor originated off the coast of North Carolina near Emerald Isle, where they were rescued from a construction site by the Carolina palm enthusiast. North Alan Brunner. They were subsequently planted in many of the city parks in the Raleigh area. These S. minor are radically different in size and growth habit than most other forms. Although these are much slower growing and produce only one or two leaves per year, they will eventually reach 7 ‘tall x 10’ wide with huge 5 ‘+ wide leaves. (Resistance zone 7b-10)
S. minor ‘McCurtain’ (McCurtain Dwarf Palmetto) These plants originated from an extremely vigorous natural stand of S. minor in McCurtain County, Oklahoma, west of Folsom, Arkansas, near the Red River. According to the late Logan Calhoun (our original seed source), the seedlings in this population have survived -24 degrees F temperatures in Wichita and are producing seeds. (Resistance zone 7b-10)
S. minor ‘Oriental Giant’ (Oriental Giant Dwarf Palmetto) In 2006, I was fortunate enough to accompany palm guru Gary Hollar to see the 10 ‘tall giant S. minor growing in Pamlico County, Eastern North Carolina city. The mother plants grew in a swamp rich in sandy wood. (Zone 7b-10)
S. minor ‘Woodville’ (Woodville Dwarf Palmetto) (S. minor A2LA-034) When we were botanizing near Woodville, MS in late February 2003, we found a 6 ‘tall S. minor with a flower spike of 7 ‘full of seeds. This may not sound strange, except that this was the only sabal seen in our entire trip that had not spilled its seed. I assumed that the seed was not good but, in fact, everything germinated. We do not know if this trait is hereditary or not, but even if not, it is an exceptionally large specimen for this area that should produce large offspring. (Resistance zone 7b-10)
S. minor var. Louisiana (Louisiana Palmetto) (synonym: S. Louisiana) This unusual Gulf Coast native is found only in a few swampy areas of Louisiana and eastern Texas, where it grows among the typical S. minor. Taxonomists often dismiss it as a variant of S. minor, but the 6 ‘tall stem seems to say otherwise. If you disagree, you might change your mind after a few hits with those 6 ‘tall trunks mentioned above. We may be seeing speciation in progress.
Regardless, all seedlings appear to develop a trunk. S. minor var. Louisiana, will reach 12 ‘tall when mature and resemble S. x texensis’ Brazoria’. Sabal minor var. Louisiana has never shown any winter damage here since 1999.