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Cocos Palm information needed
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Posted by lukelee WA Aust (My Page) on Sat, Feb 12, 05 at 16:41
I have a cocos palm which fruits constantly, up to 4 or 5 fruit pods a year. My two German Shepherds rush outside & eat the fruits before I get a chance to pick them all up & it worries me because I was told that the fruit contains a poison that can kill animals. I can't find out more about this & trying to keep the yard free of the fruit to ensure the dogs don't get them has become a never ending job at the moment. Does anyone know if these fruits are actually poisonous, to what extent & what the poison is? I'd be very appreciative if anyone can give me any information at all. Thanks very much.
Lee
Western Australia |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: Cocos Palm information needed
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- Posted by ARAD 10USDA/25SUNSET (My Page) on
Sat, Feb 12, 05 at 17:43
| Well, since your dogs didn't die... |
RE: Cocos Palm information needed
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Yes I read somewhere that the seeds do contain a poison if native animals eat it is green
eg: Flying foxes ( Fruit Bats) I have found the link do have a read.....MM. |
Here is a link that might be useful: Info
RE: Cocos Palm information needed
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| might help when you do research lukelee, no longer called cocos now 'queen palm' - 'arecastrum romanzoffianum'. not sure about toxicity of seeds? only ever seen them with borer holes in them. but the fruit bats eat the fruit that is how the palm is being spread around the bush. like has been said the dogs aren't suffering, wouldn't suggest humans eating them but. lots better palms to grow stick with the native species. len mail len lens garden page |
RE: Cocos Palm information needed
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| Actually the name has changed a few times, it was once known as Cocos plumosa and as such was placed in the same genus as the true 'Cocos', Cocos nucifera, the Coconut Palm which is completely different. It was then given the name Arecastrum romanzoffianum for a number of years before finally being placed with the Syagrus genus and given the name Syagrus romanzoffianum. As Len stated the correct common name is 'Queen Palm' and here in Queensland it was known as that until the likes of Don Burke and others came on the scene and started calling it 'Cocos'. This causes a fair bit of confusion here in Queensland with the Coconut palm which unlike the Queen Palm is not an environmental weed that pops up everywhere. As for the toxicity of the flesh or seeds, I remember as a child eating them and am now still here! My neighbour has 2 German Shepherds and a number of Queen Palms in her yard. I see the dogs chewing on them all the time and they are still alive as well. They only seem to be chewing the ripe fruit as the green fruit is still on the tree. Andrew. |
RE: Cocos Palm information needed
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- Posted by Tacca SE Qld (My Page) on
Sun, Feb 13, 05 at 22:39
| I guess that is the thing about common names - there is often more than one for the same plant and hence the need for botanical names. Anyway, I have known Syagrus romanzoffianum as both 'Queen palms' and as 'Cocus palms' for some time now. Both of these common names seem to have been around for a long time - Can't see that it is any big deal, it probably just depends on what school you went to. |
RE: Cocos Palm information needed
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| The recognised common name in the rest of the world is 'Queen Palm'. None of my horticultural friends in the US have ever heard of 'Cocos' as a common name. |
RE: Cocos Palm information needed
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| Whatever.....the fact remains however that both common names are commonly used. |
RE: Cocos Palm information needed
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| No need to get upset Tacca....as I am only stating what is fact! |
RE: Cocos Palm information needed
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| Not a case of being upset - simply stating that there is no such thing as a correct common name. A common name for a plant in one region may be commonly known by a different name in another region. We seem to have this case here with the Cocus / Queen names. It seems to me that they are known as Cocus palms in Western Aus. |
RE: Cocos Palm information needed
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| I love eating the fruit, I went to a date farm where I bought fresh dates and the fruit of the Queens palm taste the same. |
RE: Cocos Palm information needed
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| Can you cut off the fruit bearing green long pod before it opens? Can you cut off the immature fruit stalk or when the fruit first starts to appear? Once it is mature fruit, it is heavy, and the rot/stink as it ferments on ground is messy and difficult to remove. |
RE: Cocos Palm information needed
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| my friend breeds/shows great dane dogs and they eat these fruit and if anything i'd say good roughage.ha |
RE: Cocos Palm information needed
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have to agree breeindy my two LabX got into a heap that I had potted ,they were Sh----- for a week,they have never touched the cocos seeds since .
Stephen |
RE: Cocos Palm information needed
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| Yes, rosie6456, you can cut off the flower stalks or the immature fruit stalks before the fruits ripen. But that also requires some work. |
RE: Cocos Palm information needed
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| Don't mean to stray too much but common names are often confusing and/or counter-productive. Example: (Q) Which mammal, other than man, has the widest North American distribution? Catamount
Painter
Panther
Mountain Lion
Puma
Cougar
El Tigre (A) Any of these would be right. Each is a common name for Felis concolor In Central Florida, our "gophers" are turtles, not mammals and our Indian River Lagoon has 5 or 6 different critters all with the common name "Blue Crab" or try to find out what a "Chicken Hawk" is or a "Garden Snake"or a "Mud Hen" or..... |
RE: Cocos Palm information needed
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There's a good reason why arborists are trying to put a stop to 'Queen Palms' being commonly called Cocos: Cocos is actually the botanical genus name of the coconut palm: Cocos nucifera. It can be a bit confusing.
Regarding the original question of the berries being poisonous, I have had a customer who had to have their dog operated on to remove the seeds from its stomach. Needless to say, they were my customer because they were having the palms removed after that. |
Here is a link that might be useful: Tree Lopping Brisbane
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