PlantFiles: Manambe Palm
Dypsis decipiens

Indeed it's a magnificent palm, like H.lagenicaulis but more stronger. The bottle form is not so obvious when more than 2 trunks together. Once could be found all over , but now it is rather found in southern parts of Madagascar.Only a few could be seen in Antananarivo in private gardens.Otherwise you can see some more impressive specimen in private gardens also from Ansirabe rather south after more than 4 hours of taxi -brousse (Bush-taxi). The seeds are as the same size of H.lagenicaulis and ressemble also greyish colour when cleaned.

This tree, though too slow growing for most, is one of the most spectacular palms you can grow in Southern California. It is touchy as a seedling, but once established, grows steadily and forms a trunk within about 10 years. It has nice long slightly recurved leaves with smooth, deep green leaflets arranged either in paralell or in clumps at various angles (later these varieties may be end up being different species, but that will be a longs way off). The new spike (turns into a leaf) has a very attractive red coloratioin. The trunk is massive and tends to swell in the middle once quite large. It is usually a suckering palm, having 2-3 trunks. However, if trimmed to one trunk, it grows significantly faster. This is a prized palm for So Cal growers. IT has a good degree of cold hardiness, rarely being touched by frosts. However, it struggles in alkaline soils (such as found in Florida).

Like all Dypsis species, this is a native of Madagascar. However, if you've ever been to Madagascar, you know there is only a fraction of the forest left than there was even 10 years ago. Someday, soon, this palm may be extinct.