Sunday, February 7, 2010

Cabbage palm - Elizabeth Smith


Cabbage palm, originally uploaded by Elizabeth Smith.
I had a sunny Saturday hour sketching at Freedom Park in Naples, Florida. Very enjoyable! This is one of the plantings along the pathway, which winds through several different habitats, including wetlands. What is amazing is that the park is sandwiched between developments and roadways, but still has such a wild feel.

You can click on the image above to view it larger on my Flickr photostream.

2 comments:

  1. Any idea why they call this a cabbage palm, Elizabeth? It's beautifully drawn...

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  2. Thanks, Kathy - I'm so used to its name, now, that I forget that it might be curious to others!

    In the old days (and sometimes now) people ate the bud as "swamp cabbage." Sometimes it is still harvested as hearts of palm, although from what I understand there are other species harvested as well.

    Eating the bud of this species (Sabal palmetto,) destroys the tree and is not encouraged!

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