| Field notes | Siona: "Sehua". Spanish: "Tagua" and "Yarina". Clumps of 2 or more trees in soggy soil. The base of the clump forms a 1 m wide and 30 cm high mound of adventitious roots which are black and 3-4 mm in diam, the mound rises above the soggy ground. The trunk is black, covered with mosses, 720 cm high, 8 cm in diam, conspicuously marked by leafscars which makes the surface very irregular. The crown has 18 greaciously spreading leaves separated from the trunk by a 50 cm long fussy clump created by the remains and fiber of split open old leafsheats; the sheats is 40 cm long, completely encircling and with the upper margin split up into a fibrous layer; the petioleis 40 cm long; blade 290 x 110 cm with 73 pinnae on each side, the basal ones alternate, the central ones opposite. Plants dioecious. Male inflorescence (on plant from which leaves were collected) unexpanded completely hidden among the leaves. Female inflorescences (from other plant) 10 in fruiting stage on one plant, the lower one infrafoliar on a reflexed peduncle, the upper ones intrafoliar on erect peduncles, when mature peduncle 20 cm, the globula infrutescence 15 cm diam, with 10 subparts (fruits?) which have a conical verrucose base 9 x 5 cm and a ?? subspecial apex with hard woody spines to about 1 cm long. In each of these fruits (?) 5 very hards seeds. Uses: Leaves used for thatching houses. Very durable. Seeds eaten when young and tender, the pericarp which is somewhat hard and woody may by eaten either raw or cooked. |
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