Washingtonia

They are fan palms (subfamily Coryphoideae), with petioles armed with sharp thorns terminating in a rounded fan of numerous leaflets. The flowers are in a dense inflorescence, with the fruits maturing into a small blackish-brown drupe 6–10 mm in diameter with a thin layer of sweet flesh over the single seed. ==Taxonomy==

There is one accepted species in the Genus Washingtonia: Washingtonia filifera. Phylogenetic testing conducted on populations of Washingtonia palms across their native range showed four distinct genetic populations. Existing morphological distinctions between the previously accepted species did not match the distinct populations. Washingtonia was previously divided into two species: Washingtonia filifera and Washingtonia robusta. The morphological differences between these two former species also graded into each other, and specimens with combined attributes were named Washingtonia × filibusta, assumed to be a hybrid between the two. W. filifera includes three infraspecific varieties at this time: • Washingtonia filifera var. filifera • Washingtonia filifera var. robusta (H.Wendl.) Parish • Washingtonia filifera var. sonorae (S.Watson) M.E.Jones W. f. var. sonorae is native to the central coast of Sonora state, near the city of Guaymas. ==Image gallery==

File:Washingtonia filifera — Mary's Grove — Florian Boyd 001.jpg|Washingtonia filifera var. filifera File:Dead Sea - Kempinski Hotel (7).JPG|Washingtonia filifera var. robusta File:Washingtonia palm2.jpg|Washingtonia palms near Twentynine Palms, California, USA File:New_Borg_El_Arab_City_17.jpg|Washingtonia palms in New Borg El Arab, Egypt. File:Starr 070302-4914 Washingtonia sp..jpg|Washingtonia fronds File:Palm_tree_expo_park_coliseum_peristyle.jpg|Historic fan palm (first known transplanting late 1850s) in Exposition Park, Los Angeles, California, USA File:華盛頓椰子 Washingtonia filifera 20220815193754 03.jpg|Washingtonia, inflorescence and the fruiting season ==References==