TREE: Pipe Palms

The trunk of the Pipe Palms tree is prized. Similar to a bamboo tree, this wetland and marsh tree grows quickly and produces a long tubular trunk. If cut down leaving two flowering sections above the waterline, the trunk will regrow. The inner fibers of the trunk dry to a fine hay-like structure that powders and falls apart when fully dried. The tubes are oiled and lightly smoked repeatedly. This produces a watertight seal that extends the life of the tubing, especially when buried in mud, soil, or water. These are excellent for plumbing and have been used extensively in culture where metal piping is too expensive or not available in good quantities..
Pipe Palms are a tall frond tree that grows quickly in damp environments and even under sun dimming tree canopies. The plant roots up to 10 feet below the muddy ground with a typical trunk diameter of 1" to 4", but foot wide elderly ones have been found. The trunk is extremely straight with sectioning every 3"-9". At these sections will grow a stem that alternates at 90 degree positions around the circumference. The stem unfurls into a frilly frond that curls around itself. This is not a leaf, but the flowering of the tree. At the top is a wide outward spray of flat fronds, reaching sixteen feet in diameter with adulthood.