The palm standing before you belongs to a unique species, native to the Canary Islands, where it has grown naturally since long before humans first arrived.
With its magnificent crown of leaves and sturdy trunk, it is one of the most recognisable features of the Canarian landscape and the official plant symbol of the archipelago.
For centuries, this palm was far more than an ornamental plant. Its most prized part was the palmito, the tender young leaves at the heart of the palm. It was one of the first materials our ancestors worked with, even before pottery, and it was used to make the fronds for Palm Sunday and, above all, clothing and everyday items such as blankets, bags, hats and containers for carrying food. Its leaves were even used to thatch the roofs of traditional homes. On the island of La Gomera, its sweet sap, known as guarapo, is still collected and boiled down to produce the traditional syrup called miel de palma or “palm honey”.
On these islands of volcanoes, wind and sunshine, the Canary Island palm represents resilience, tradition and the deep connection between people and nature.
The palm in numbers
- 20mis the height it can reach
- 6mcan be the length of a single leaf
- 2sexes: there are male and female palms
- 1place on Earth where it grows wild: the Canary Islands
Much more than a plant
Palmito
The tender leaves at the heart of the palm were its most prized part.
Palm Sunday
Palmito was used to make the fronds blessed on Palm Sunday.
Clothing and everyday items
Blankets, bags, hats and containers for carrying food.
Guarapo and palm honey
On La Gomera its sap, guarapo, is collected to make miel de palma, “palm honey”.
Did you know…?
Only female palms bear fruit: small orange dates known in the Canaries as támaras.
In the valley of Haría, in the north of Lanzarote, it was customary to plant one palm for every girl born and two for every boy. That is why it is known as the valley of a thousand palms.
It is sturdier than the date palm: its trunk is thicker and its crown denser and rounder.
Beyond the Canaries it graces parks and avenues all over the world, from the French Riviera to California.
How much do you know about the Canary Island palm?
Where does the Canary Island palm grow in the wild?
It is endemic to the Canaries: in the wild, it exists only on these islands.What is obtained from its sap on La Gomera?
The guarapo is slowly boiled down until it becomes miel de palma.Which palms produce támaras?
The Canary Island palm is dioecious: some palms are male and others female.What did our ancestors value most about the palm?
Palmito was used for Palm Sunday fronds, clothing and everyday items.
Protecting our palms means preserving a living part of our history.