Beautiful Trees #6

The strange and beautiful Nikau palm is the southernmost growing of all the palms, and is endemic to New Zealand.  I love its strong shape and its dense, angular top. 

The palm is intrinsically of great appeal to artists, both for its shape and its associations, and appears in the works of many New Zealand painters.  This is by Jenny Bennett:

The tree grows to heights of 10 metres. The single stem (it's very rare for there to be more than one, or for there to be side branches) is marked with rings left by the marks of leaves which have fallen.
The leaves are about 1 to 3 metres long, and were used by the Māori in building. The top of the stem is fleshy and juicy and was (is?) sometimes eaten.









Here is another one of Jenny's paintings: (see www.jennybennett.com)

This is a different interpretation - by Sandi O'Neill (see www.newzealand-artist.co.nz)

To me the Nikau is a strong symbol of home.  Beautiful New Zealand, with its beaches, its forests, its magnetic pull when I'm away. Summer, sea, sand..... my idea of happiness