Key characteristics

Classification: Evergreen palm
Height: 20 to 30 feet
Width: 6 to 10 feet
Flower color: Yellow
Foliage color: Deep green, fan-shaped foliage
Bloom time: Late spring to early summer
Light: Full sun to partial shade
Water: Moderate
Growing zone: USDA zones 7 to 11

Perennials

Trachycarpus fortunei

Windmill Palm

Trachycarpus fortunei is an evergreen palm with large, fan-shaped leaves held on long stalks around the top of a slender trunk. The deep green leaves form a rounded crown, while older specimens develop a distinctive trunk densely covered with coarse brown fibers from persistent leaf bases. Small yellow flowers appear in large, branching clusters in late spring to early summer. Female plants may produce rounded blue-black fruits when a male plant is growing nearby for pollination.

Light

Full sun to partial shade

Water

Moderate

Bloom time

Late spring to early summer

Find this plant

Works well in

Tropical Gardens
Poolside Gardens
Courtyard Gardens
Containers
Foundation Plantings

Companion plants

Fatsia · Canna · Pineapple lily · Hosta · Crocosmia · Hardy geranium · Japanese forest grass

Design tip

Use windmill palms to establish the tallest layer in a tropical-style planting, then surround them with progressively lower foliage. Keeping the lower portion of the trunk visible emphasizes their height and creates a clearer contrast between the fibrous trunk and broad surrounding leaves.

Printable plant sheet (PDF)