Chamaedorea rojasiana Standl. & Steyerm., Publ. Field Mus. Nat. Hist., Bot. Ser. 23: 205 (1947)

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Distribution

GUATEMALA. Quetzaltenango. San Marcos. Solola. Suchitepequez. MEXICO. Chiapas. (Hodel, D. 1992. Chamaedorea Palms, The Species and Their Cultivation. The International Palm Society.)A

Discussion

  • The description is from Standley and Steyermark (1947, 1958) and supplemented from our own collections. C. rojasiana appears related to C. geonomiformis and C. simplex, the latter with which bifid-leaved forms have been confused. C. geonomiformis differs in the nerveless or only obscurely nerved perianth ofboth sexes offlowers when dry, the branched inflorescences, and the thicker blade apically incised no more than 1/2 its length. C. simplex differs in the lack ofconspicuous secondary nerves between the primaries, the primary nerves keeled above, and the superficial pistillate flowers. C. rojasiana is a handsome species that unfortunately is not in cultivation except for a few plants in the research collection in Los Angeles.
    Chamaedorea rojasiana has an unusual distribution; it occurs on the Pacific slope of Guatemala and the Atlantic slope of Chiapas, Mexico. It is to be expected on the Pacific slope of Mexico near Guatemala.? (Hodel, D. 1992. Chamaedorea Palms, The Species and Their Cultivation. The International Palm Society.)A

Biology And Ecology

  • Dense, moist or wet forest on the Pacific slope of Guatemala and Atlantic slope of Mexico; 1,200-2,600 m elevation. (Hodel, D. 1992. Chamaedorea Palms, The Species and Their Cultivation. The International Palm Society.)A

Etymology

  • Honors Ulises Rojas, formerly director ofthe Jardin Botanico of Guatemala, on and near whose Imea many of the known specimens were collected. (Hodel, D. 1992. Chamaedorea Palms, The Species and Their Cultivation. The International Palm Society.)A

Common Name

  • Pacaya, molinillo - Guatemala (Hodel, D. 1992. Chamaedorea Palms, The Species and Their Cultivation. The International Palm Society.)A

    Description

    • Habit: solitary, slender, erect, 1-1.5 m tall though sometimes flowering when stemless. Stem: 6-8 mm diam., green, smooth, ringed, internodes to 5.57 cm long, slender prop roots basally. Leaves: 3-6, spreading, pinnate or less often bifid; sheath 712 cm long, 8-14mm thick, oblique apically, prominently striatenerved; petiole to 2.5-5 cm long or sometimes longer but shorter than sheath; rachis 12-18 cm long when pinnate, 7.5-8.5 cm long when bifid; pinnae 2-4 on each side of rachis, terminal pair largest, this to 13-17 cm long on upper margin, 4-6 cm along rachis, with 4-6 primary nerves on each side of rachis and 1-3 secondaries between them, basal ones smallest, these to 13 x 2.5 cm, each with a central midrib and 2 pairs of slightly less conspicuous primary nerves on each side, falcate-acuminate, sigmoid, thin, concolorous or slightly paler below, ifbifid then blade to 20 x 20 cm, apically incised to more than 1/2 its length, lobes broadly diverging, acuminate, 7-nerved. Inflorescences: interfoliar; peduncles 11-20 cm long, very slender, scarcely 2 mm thick near apex, erect or spreading; bracts 3-4, tubular, appressed, scarcely more than 3 mm broad, striatenerved. Staminate spicate or with 2-3 rachillae; rachis or flower bearing portion 7-20 cm long, 4 mm thick, densely flowered to base, nodding or pendulous, greenish yellow in flower. Pistillate spicate or furcate; rachis or rachillae 7-9 cm long, erect and yellow in flower, spreading and orange in fruit. Flowers: Staminate in dense spirals, 3-3.5 x 1.75-2 mm, ovoid, yellowish, strongly nerved when dry, deeply sunken; calyx 0.5I x 2 mm, lobed, connate and/or imbricate in basal 1/2 sepals rounded apically; petals 3.5-4 x 1.5-2 mm, valvate, petals connate apically and basally and adnate apically to pistillode and corolla opening by lateral slits, acute; stamens shorter than pistillode, filaments short, anthers entire apically; pistillode 3.5 mm high, columnar, truncate. Pistillate in moderately dense spirals, 1 x 2-3 mm, shieldlike, yellow, deeply sunken in oblong or oval depressions 2.5 mm long; calyx 0.25 x 2.5 mm, obscurely lobed, ringlike, membranous, ± transparent, sepals imbricate and/or connate nearly to top, straight apically; petals imbricate nearly to apex, irregularly rounded, prominently striate-nerved; pistil 1 x 2 mm, depressedglobose, yellowish, styles short or lacking, stigma lobes thick, blunt, separated, erect. Fruits: drying 7-9 mm long, subglobose or ovoid-ellipsoid, orange at first then maturing purple-black. (Hodel, D. 1992. Chamaedorea Palms, The Species and Their Cultivation. The International Palm Society.)A

    Materials Examined

    • GUATEMALA. Quetzaltenango: Hodel 903, 906, 910, 984A, 984B, 987 (AGUAT, BH); Standley 68308 (F); Steyermark 33541,37363 (F). San Marcos: Hodel 915, 991 (BH, AGUAT). Solola: Steyermark 47355 (F). Suchitepequez: Steyermark 35248 (F). MEXICO. Chiapas: Breedlove 15291 (F); Croat 65182 (CAS); Hodel 925,927 (BH, MEXU); Purpus 7421 (F, GH, MO); Thorne 40278 (RSA). (Hodel, D. 1992. Chamaedorea Palms, The Species and Their Cultivation. The International Palm Society.)A

    Bibliography

      A. Hodel, D. 1992. Chamaedorea Palms, The Species and Their Cultivation. The International Palm Society.