Last updated: January 28, 2025
Place
Nightingale Trail - Stop 13 Saw Palmetto
NPS photo
Saw Palmetto “Serenoa repens”
The Saw Palmetto is a common plant in the understory. It’s trunk commonly grows along the ground so it is rarely more than eight feet in height. The Saw Palmetto’s leaflets fan out from a central point at the end of a saw-toothed stem. Large clusters of creamy white flowers give rise to dark blue berries which are readily eaten by turkey, deer and raccoon. Sweetgrass baskets are sewn together using strips of the stem. Leaves were used to make small brooms and to cover huts to protect from the weather.
The Saw Palmetto is a common plant in the understory. It’s trunk commonly grows along the ground so it is rarely more than eight feet in height. The Saw Palmetto’s leaflets fan out from a central point at the end of a saw-toothed stem. Large clusters of creamy white flowers give rise to dark blue berries which are readily eaten by turkey, deer and raccoon. Sweetgrass baskets are sewn together using strips of the stem. Leaves were used to make small brooms and to cover huts to protect from the weather.