Characteristics
| Hardiness zone | 9b |
|---|---|
| Foliage type | evergreen |
| Plant form | upright spreading |
| Mature height | 8 feet |
| Spread | 10 feet |
| Light requirements | partial shade to shade |
| Moisture requirements | average to moist |
| Plant origin | import |
Finger Palm
Botanical name: Rhapis multifida
A graceful, slow growing palm with refined, arching foliage at the end of slender stems; great in containers and makes an excellent house plant; avoid direct sun and frost.
Ornamental Features
Finger Palm has attractive green foliage. The deeply cut lobed palmate leaves are highly ornamental and remain green throughout the winter. Neither the flowers nor the fruit are ornamentally significant.
Landscape Attributes
Finger Palm is a multi-stemmed evergreen shrub with an upright spreading habit of growth. Its relatively fine texture sets it apart from other landscape plants with less refined foliage.
This is a relatively low maintenance shrub, and can be pruned at anytime. It is a good choice for attracting birds to your yard. It has no significant negative characteristics.
Finger Palm is recommended for the following landscape applications;
Accent, Hedges/Screening, General Garden Use, Container Planting
Planting and Growing
Finger Palm will grow to be about 8 feet tall at maturity, with a spread of 10 feet. It has a low canopy with a typical clearance of 1 foot from the ground, and is suitable for planting under power lines. It grows at a slow rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for approximately 20 years.
This shrub does best in partial shade to shade. It does best in average to evenly moist conditions, but will not tolerate standing water. It is not particular as to soil type or pH. It is highly tolerant of urban pollution and will even thrive in inner city environments. Consider applying a thick mulch around the root zone in winter to protect it in exposed locations or colder microclimates. This species is not originally from North America. It can be propagated by division.
Finger Palm makes a fine choice for the outdoor landscape, but it is also well-suited for use in outdoor pots and containers. With its upright habit of growth, it is best suited for use as a 'thriller' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination; plant it near the center of the pot, surrounded by smaller plants and those that spill over the edges. It is even sizeable enough that it can be grown alone in a suitable container. Note that when grown in a container, it may not perform exactly as indicated on the tag - this is to be expected. Also note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.
