Oil palm
Oil palm
Scientific name: Elaeis guineensis Jack.
Local name: ‘Oil palm’
Taxonomic Position of Coconut According to Cronquist (1981)
| Kingdom | : Plantae |
| Division | : Magnoliophyta |
| Class | : Liliopsida |
| Subclass | : Arecidae |
| Order | : Arecales |
| Family | : Arecaceae |
| Genus | : Elaeis |
| Species | : E. guineensis |
Botanical Description of Oil Palm
Habit: Perennial tree
Root: Adventitious
Leaf: The spirally arranged leaves are pinnately compound, leaflets are linear-laceolate.
Stem: Trunk is unbranched, bearing crown leaves, normally unbranched, composed of a series of joints
Inflorescence: Spadix, having a bract, known as spathe
Flower: unisexual, actinomorphic, hypogenous, and sessile
Male flower: Numerous
Female flower: 20 to 40
Perianth: Tepal 6, arranged in two whorls
Androecium: Stamen 6, arranged in two whorls, anther versatile
Gynoecium: ovary superior, carpel 3, placentation axile
Fruit: One seeded drupe, woody endocarp, and smooth exocarp
Chromosome number: 2n=32
Economic Importance
i) Widely used as edible oil
ii) Used to produce cosmatics
iii) Used to produce medicine like vitamin A and D
iv) Oil palm frond is used as organic compost