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Nypa fruticans
Also called Mangrove Palm, Nypa Palm, Nipa
In Singapore: Nipah Palm, Mangrove Palm, Nipah, Attap, Water Coconut, 水椰 (Native to Singapore, Vulnerable)
Nipa palm is the only palm adapted to mangrove habitats, growing in brackish estuaries and coastal swamps across the Indian and Pacific Oceans. Its trunk grows underground, so only the fronds and flower stalks rise above the water, and it is grown mainly for thatch and sap.
Nypa fruticans, commonly known as the nipa palm (or simply nipa, from Malay: nipah) or mangrove palm, is a species of palm native to the coastlines and estuarine habitats of the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the only palm considered adapted to the mangrove biome. The genus Nypa and the subfamily Nypoideae are monotypic taxa because this species is their only member.
Wild stands of N. fruticans can be managed to optimize sap production by thinning to desired densities and through traditional farm management techniques.
In cultivation, N. fruticans readily propagates via rhizome divisions.
N. fruticans is pollinated by small insects. Putative pollinators include:
The long, feathery leaves of the nipa palm are used by local populations as roof material for thatched houses or dwellings. The leaves are also used in many types of basketry and thatching. Because they are buoyant, large stems are used to train swimmers in Burma.
[Contains information from Leaf Area Index (LAI) and Heritage Trees from data.gov.sg (National Parks Board), made available under the terms of the Singapore Open Data Licence version 1.0]
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Nypa fruticans by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
