Wikimedia Commons
Apocynaceae
Madagascar Palm
Pachypodium lamerei
Endurance in isolation and thorny protection of beauty.
- Family
- Apocynaceae
- Genus
- Pachypodium
- Native to
- Madagascar
- Bloom season
- Summer
- Type
- succulent tree
- Height
- 200–600 cm
- Sunlight
- full sun
- Soil
- very well-drained, sandy, gritty
- Water
- low; drought-tolerant
- Hardiness
- 10–12
- Lifespan
- perennial; decades
Did you know
- Despite the name, it is not a palm at all — it is a succulent related to oleander and plumeria.
- The trunk is covered in sharp spines and stores water, allowing survival through Madagascar's long dry seasons.
- The elegant white flowers only appear on mature plants, sometimes after 10 or more years of growth.
- It is one of the most iconic plants of Madagascar's unique spiny forest ecosystem.
- The genus name Pachypodium means 'thick foot', referring to the swollen water-storing base of the trunk.
Color meanings
White
rare beauty guarded by defenses