This palm does well at the Grove in Riverside, CA, in the heat and full sun or with slight shade from neighboring trees. This palm is resistant to drought, tolerates temperatures into the low 20s and will thrive from the Inland Empire to coastal Southern California, where it prefers full sun. The Chinensis will do poorly and likely brown and eventually die if exposed to the intense heat and full sun of the California desert.

Slow growing palm for first 10 years or so, and commonly seen used as a potted plant. Later growing about 6-8 inches a year to reach a height of 25 to 30 feet with a large, robust crown. Trees in their natural subtropical environment may reach 40 plus feet in height.

Closely ringed brown, solitary trunk that eventually grays with exposure and age. Broad and rather large 5-6 feet wide leaf on similar sized petioles, deeply folded, costapalmate bright green, shiny leaf 4 feet long, divided about two thirds down, in a dense canopy of 30-50 leaves, with 60-100 segments that dramatically droop at the last one third of the leaf. Armature is present on lower half of petiole. The leaf bases are not persistent, and the fronds are self-cleaning, falling off with time and never forming a skirt.