SCIENTIFIC NAME: Copernicia prunifera

COMMON NAME(S): Carnauba wax palm
SUB FAMILY: Coryphoideae
TRIBE: Corypheae
ORIGIN: Brazil
HARDINESS ZONES: 10B-11
TYPICAL MAXIMUM HEIGHT: 30'
GROWTH RATE: Slow to moderate
HABIT: Solitary; canopy of about 2 dozen leaves
SALT TOLERANCE: Moderate
DROUGHT TOLERANCE: Moderate
SOIL REQUIREMENTS: Widely adaptable
LIGHT REQUIREMENTS: High
NUTRITION REQUIREMENTS: Low
POPULAR USES: Specimen tree; leaf wax is a commercial product in Brazil
HUMAN HAZARDS: Spiny
POPULAR OR RECOMMENDED CULTIVARS: None

COMMENTS: One of three Copernicia species that occur in South America, the carnauba wax palm is valued in Brazil for the copious quantity of heat resistant wax found on its leaves. Leaves are harvested, dried, and the wax beaten from them for processing into various waxes and polishes. In its native habitat, the carnauba wax palm is subject to flooding, and thus may have landscape tolerance for less well-drained sites than the Cuban Copernicia species. The carnauba wax palm is also slightly faster growing than its West Indian cousins. The leaf bases of carnauba wax palms curiously persist on the lower 1/3 of the trunk while falling cleanly from the upper portions. While not as drought tolerant or dramatic in appearance as the sessile-leafed Copernicia species (those lacking leaf stems), carnauba wax palm makes an attractive specimen tree in tropical gardens. Similar species: C. alba, the carnaday palm, occurs in Paraguay, northern Argentina, Bolivia and contiguous southwestern Brazil. It often forms enormous populations. Resembling the carnauba wax palm in most respects, it is also a secondary commercial source of industrial grade wax.