saw palmetto
Serenoa repens · Arecaceae
saw palmetto (Serenoa repens) is a perennial shrub in the Arecaceae family. It is native to North America. USDA records it as hardy in zone 7 and warmer, down to about 7°F.
At a glance
| Type | shrub Derived |
|---|---|
| Lifecycle | perennial USDA |
| Native status | native USDA |
| Mature height | 7 ft USDA |
| Light | shade USDA |
| Water need | high USDA |
| Growth rate | slow USDA |
| Soil pH | 4.5–7.5 USDA |
| Bloom | May–June USDA |
| Flower color | White USDA |
| Hardiness zones | 7 and warmer USDA |
| Guild layer | shrub Derived |
| Nursery availability | Routinely Available USDA |
USDA quoted from the USDA PLANTS database · Derived computed by a fixed rule from those columns. No value on this page is estimated.
Growing conditions
It tolerates full shade. USDA rates it as having needs consistently moist ground. Its drought tolerance is rated high. It tolerates saturated, poorly drained ground well (USDA rates its anaerobic tolerance high). It is recorded on soils from pH 4.5 to 7.5 — a broad range that spans acidic through mildly alkaline ground. Its cold limit is zone 7.
Size and growth
At maturity it reaches about 7 ft, making it a plant that will finish above head height. It grows slowly.
Bloom period
USDA records a bloom period of May through June. Flowers are white.
A flowering date, not a pollinator rating.
Foliage, flower and season
Summer foliage is yellow-green, coarse in texture. Its flowers are not conspicuous — a plant for form and foliage. Its active growth period is spring and summer. Its winter foliage is dense, which makes it useful for year-round screening. USDA rates its lifespan as long.
What the site needs to provide
USDA records it across sites receiving 35 to 80 inches of annual precipitation. It needs at least 180 frost-free days to finish its season. It roots to at least 18 inches. Fertility requirement: low — no feeding needed on ordinary garden soil.
Propagating it
Propagate it from seed, bare root and container stock. USDA records no cold-stratification requirement, so seed should germinate without a chilling period. Its seed spreads at a moderate rate.
Resilience and wildlife
Browsing animals rate it barely palatable — the sourced basis for calling it deer-resistant. Its fire tolerance is rated high, and it can resprout after damage. Its growth form is recorded as bunch.
Role in a guild
Shrub layer. In a layered planting this is woody mid-level structure between the understory and the ground. The layer is derived by a fixed rule from growth habit and mature height.
Tags
Related plants
Similar role and hardiness
- fourwing saltbush Atriplex canescens
- big saltbush Atriplex lentiformis
- coyotebrush Baccharis pilularis
- Eastern Mojave buckwheat Eriogonum fasciculatum
- California buckthorn Frangula californica
Where this data comes from
Every value on this page comes from the USDA PLANTS database record for symbol SERE2, or is computed from those values by a fixed rule. Nothing here is estimated or model-generated. Where USDA publishes no value, this page omits the claim rather than filling the gap.
- Quoted from USDA PLANTS: active growth period, Bloom, Bloom end, browse palatability, cold stratification, Drought tolerance, Edible, fall conspicuous, fertility requirement, fire tolerance, Flower color, flower conspicuous, foliage color, foliage porosity winter, foliage texture, frost free days min, fruit conspicuous, growth form, Growth rate, Hardiness zones, Lifecycle, lifespan, Light, Mature height, Minimum temperature, Native status, Nitrogen fixation, Nursery availability, precipitation max in, precipitation min in, propagation, resprout ability, root depth in, seed spread rate, Soil pH, Soil pH (upper), Tolerance of wet soil, Toxicity, Water need.
- Derived by a fixed rule from those columns: Guild layer, Type.
Read our full data sources and methodology.
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