VALUE AND USE
SPECIES: Serenoa repens | Saw-Palmetto 



WOOD PRODUCTS VALUE : 
Saw-palmetto stems provide crude logs and have been used for pulp,
although the quality of the paper produced is poor [32,38].


IMPORTANCE TO LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE : 
Although occasionally eaten by cattle, saw-palmetto has little value as
livestock forage and is a rangeland pest [18,19].

Saw-palmetto helps provide primary habitat for the wildlife of southern
Florida's palmetto prairies.  Distinctive species include the crested
caracara, the Florida burrowing owl, and the Florida sandhill crane [6].
As a member of scrub communities, saw-palmetto provides essential
habitat for sand skinks, the Florida mouse, and a variety of birds,
including the Florida scrub jay--a threatened subspecies [4].  Black
bears feed on saw-palmetto fruit [17] and the young shoots which sprout
after winter fires in the Florida flatwoods [16].  White-tailed deer
also eat saw-palmetto fruit, especially during dry years [13].


PALATABILITY : 
NO-ENTRY


NUTRITIONAL VALUE : 
NO-ENTRY


COVER VALUE : 
Saw-palmetto provides security cover for white-tailed deer in Florida's
pine flatwoods [13].


VALUE FOR REHABILITATION OF DISTURBED SITES : 
Saw-palmetto can be used for watershed protection, erosion control, and
phosphate-mine reclamation [6].


OTHER USES AND VALUES : 
A drug called serenoa can be derived from the partially dried, ripe
fruits of saw-palmetto and used to treat bladder, prostate, and urethra
infections.  Bees collect nectar from the flowers to produce honey [32].
Saw-palmetto leaves provide thatch and Christmas decorations.  Saw
palmetto stems are a source of tannin acid extract and can be processed
into a cork substitute [32,38].


MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : 
Saw-palmetto is a pest and fire hazard in Southern timber stands.  It
contributes large amounts of combustible fuel to forest understories and
competes with pines (Pinus spp.) for moisture, nutrients, and space
[3,21].

Silvicultural and range management objectives often call for
saw-palmetto control.  Centuries of open range, abusive burning, and
excessive grazing have converted many flatwood-bluestem (Andropogon
spp.) ranges into flatwood-saw-palmetto ranges [18].  Saw-palmetto
control releases palatable grasses and forbs for livestock and deer, and
reduces competition with conifers [13].  Mist-blower applications of the
herbicide 2,4,5-T provide effective control [19,23], especially when
used in conjunction with prescribed burning [3] or other defoliation
treatments [23].  Following defoliation by fire or mechanical treatment,
saw-palmetto should be sprayed when new shoots appear (approximately 6
months later) [38].

Saw-palmetto does not regenerate well following mechanical removal [5].
Mechanical disturbance which dislodges, uproots, and cuts saw-palmetto
stems and rhizomes provides effective control [19].  Roller-drum
choppers pulled in tandem at offset angles [13] or perpendicular to each
other [28] may reduce saw-palmetto cover by 90 percent 2 years after
treatment [13].  Chop-rest-chop rotations provide continued range
maintenance [18].

When wildlife or cover management goals require saw-palmetto
enhancement, use rock phosphate fertilizer [28] or site drainage [40] to
increase cover.

Related categories for Species: Serenoa repens | Saw-Palmetto