The Lipstick Palm ( Cyrtostachys renda ) is an stunning clumping palm that is native to Indonesia, Borneo, Thailand, Malaysia and Sumatra. It has become popular worldwide due to its bright red trunks and contrasting bright green foliage, unfortunately for many, it is a tropical plant and will not survive outdoors in other climates, or indoors without high care.
We keep 4 plants alive here in Melbourne through the cool winter and will add a blog post at some point with photos. Although we have several greenhouses / hot houses here on site, we take the Cyrtostachys renda home and inside for the winter. The Lipstick Palms are kept on a table next to the window in the brightest room of the house. Heat mats are on 24 hours a day, 7 days a week unless it is a sunny day and there is a lot of warmth coming through the window. We also have heating going that keeps the house between 18-20°C during the winter, as well as a humidifier in the room running constantly. At the end of winter they are still looking beautiful.
The Lipstick Palm is also known as the Red Sealing Wax Palm. It was given this name because its red trunks were considered the same colour as the red wax that was used to seal letters. The plant does not provide wax.
Growth
Cyrtostachys renda is a clumping palm that can grow to heights of 15 metres, although this is uncommon outside of their native countries, they are more often seen at around 3-6 metres in other tropical zones. Indoors they will be smaller again, especially if in cooler climates. The Lipstick Palm is slow growing and its bright red stems will not be on show until they are a few years old, they will however from an early age start to produce offshoots so you end up with an average of 3-5 stems /trunks.
The leaves are easily identifiable by their boat shape and lengthways concertina appearance. they are a rich, bright green and stunning. Its fruit is black when ripe and holds one seed per fruit. There really isn’t anything to not love about the appearance of these beauties, especially if you live in the tropics. Tolerate full sun once established but prefers dappled or afternoon shade. can grow naturally on the edges of marshland and tolerate wet seasonal soils.
Growing these lovely palms from seed is not really for beginners, they require consistent heat and moisture for long periods for germination to occur … which can take up to 9-12 months!
FAMILY:
Arecaceae
CLIMATE:
Tropical only outdoors – can be grown in other zones but is high care.
TEMPERATURE RANGE:
15 to 38°C / 60 to 100°F. Temperatures that drop below 12 °C can be fatal.
SOIL TYPE:
A well draining but consistently moist soil.
LOCATION:
Dappled shade to afternoon shade preferred, will tolerate full sun once established.
HEIGHT:
Up to 15 metres (350 feet) although rare outside if its native lands.
WIDTH:
Up to 7 metres (23 feet)
pH:
6.0-7.0
GROWTH TYPE:
Evergreen, Clumping
WATER REQUIREMENTS:
Medium – High
POLLINATION:
Insects
MATURITY:
3-5 years
GERMINATION RATES:
70-82%
GERMINATION TIME:
Up to 12 months!
SEEDS PER GRAM:
3
MEDICINAL QUALITIES:
No
WEED POTENTIAL:
No
FACTS ABOUT CYRTOSTACHYS RENDA (Lipstick Palm)
The Lipstick Palm is a clumping or cluster palm, which means it will offset new shoots. When you see these and it looks like several have been planted close together, this is not the case but how they naturally grow.
This high maintenance plant is not tolerant of cold, frost, salt, drought or extreme heat.
The Cyrtostachys renda was listed as vulnerable in 1995 due to heavy harvesting in its native lands. However the Indonesian government developed laws to protect the species, the species has since been removed from the protected species list as of 2000.
