Category:Arecaceae

Arecaceae Temporal range: 80–0 Ma PreЄ Є O S D C P T J K Pg N Late Cretaceous- Recent
Coconut palm tree Cocos nucifera in Martinique.
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Monocots
Clade:	Commelinids
Order:	Arecales
Family:	Arecaceae Bercht. & J.Presl, nom. cons.[1]
Subfamilies
Arecoideae Calamoideae Ceroxyloideae Coryphoideae Nypoideae [2]
Diversity
Well over 2600 species in some 202 genera

Arecaceae is the palm family.

Selected genera

Silhouette of palm trees in Kwa-Zulu Natal, South Africa

Palm trees in Multan, Pakistan

• Archontophoenix—Bangalow palm
• Areca—Betel palm
• Astrocaryum
• Attalea
• Bactris—Pupunha
• Beccariophoenix—Beccariophoenix alfredii
• Bismarckia—Bismarck palm
• Borassus—Palmyra palm, sugar palm, toddy palm
• Calamus—Rattan palm
• Ceroxylon
• Cocos—Coconut
• Coccothrinax
• Copernicia—Carnauba wax palm
• Corypha—Gebang palm, Buri palm or Talipot palm
• Elaeis—Oil palm
• Euterpe—Cabbage heart palm, açaí palm
• Hyphaene—Doum palm
• Jubaea—Chilean wine palm, Coquito palm
• Latania—Latan palm
• Licuala
• Livistona—Cabbage palm
• Mauritia—Moriche palm
• Metroxylon—Sago palm
• Nypa—Nipa palm
• Parajubaea—Bolivian coconut palms
• Phoenix—Date palm
• Phoenix sylvestris—Wild date palm
• Pritchardia
• Raphia—Raffia palm
• Rhapidophyllum
• Rhapis
• Roystonea—Royal palm
• Sabal—Palmettos
• Salacca—Salak
• Syagrus—Queen palm
• Thrinax
• Trachycarpus—Windmill palm, Kumaon palm
• Trithrinax
• Veitchia—Manila palm, Joannis palm
• Washingtonia—Fan palm

Uses

Arecaceae have great economic importance, including coconut products, oils, dates, palm syrup, ivory nuts, carnauba wax, rattan cane, raffia, and palm wood.

Along with dates mentioned above, members of the palm family with human uses are numerous.

• The type member of Arecaceae is the areca palm, the fruit of which, the areca nut, is chewed with the betel leaf for intoxicating effects (Areca catechu).
• Carnauba wax is harvested from the leaves of a Brazilian palm (Copernicia).
• Rattans, whose stems are used extensively in furniture and baskets, are in the genus Calamus.
• Palm oil is an edible vegetable oil produced by the oil palms in the genus Elaeis.
• Several species are harvested for heart of palm, a vegetable eaten in salads.
• Sap of the nipa palm Nypa is used to make vinegar.
• Palm sap is sometimes fermented to produce palm wine or toddy, an alcoholic beverage common in parts of Africa, India, and the Philippines. It is also drunk, fresh, as neera, and is a refreshing drink that is consumed until sundown, after which it starts to ferment.
• Palmyra and date palm sap is harvested in Bengal, India, to process into gur and jaggery.
• Dragon's blood, a red resin used traditionally in medicine, varnish, and dyes, may be obtained from the fruit of Daemonorops species.
• Coconut is the partially edible seed of the fruit of the coconut palm (Cocos nucifera).
• Coir is a coarse, water-resistant fiber extracted from the outer shell of coconuts, used in doormats, brushes, mattresses, and ropes. In India, beekeepers use coir in their bee smokers.
• Some indigenous groups living in palm-rich areas use palms to make many of their necessary items and food. Sago, for example, a starch made from the pith of the trunk of the sago palm Metroxylon sagu, is a major staple food for lowland peoples of New Guinea and the Moluccas. This is not the same plant commonly used as a house plant and called "sago palm".
• Palm wine is made from Jubaea also called Chilean wine palm, or coquito palm
• Recently, the fruit of the açaí palm Euterpe has been used for its reputed health benefits.
• Saw palmetto (Serenoa repens) is under investigation as a drug for treating enlarged prostates.
• Palm leaves are also valuable to some peoples as a material for thatching, basketry, clothing, and in religious ceremonies (see "Symbolism" below).

References

Acknowledgements

This article uses material from the Wikipedia article Arecaceae, which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0.