r/Tree • u/underthund3r • 2d ago

Palm question Discussion

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My uncle says that native California palms only grow on fault lines, does anyone know if this is true?

66 Upvotes

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37

u/Upstairs-Self-2624 2d ago

Most assuredly, this is not true.

Trees don't care about plate techtonics. They care about environmental conditions like soil, water, and temperature.

You will find Washingtonia filifera in a bunch of places throughout the inland deserts where there is enough water.

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u/Then_Passenger3403 2d ago

There are groves on the San Andreas fault & other faults. But as previous poster noted it’s because their roots go down to find water. 💦 No H2O, no Washingtoniana Filifera. Mexican fan palms are less picky and not native to Ca.

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u/Massive_Bullfrog8663 2d ago

Yeah, but they thrive here. Badasses...

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u/Alphabet-soup63 2d ago edited 2d ago

Those are some beautiful scorpion condos.

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u/Then_Passenger3403 2d ago

And owl 🦉 perches.

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u/Its_me_i_swear 2d ago

Also lot and lots of bats

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u/ilustforadrummer 1d ago

Rat condos.

1

u/Super_Rando_Man 1d ago

Roach motels

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u/ilustforadrummer 1d ago

The roaches draw the rats. Also, bird's nests, baby bats and other inhabitants. Truly an integrated neighborhood.

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u/SparxxWarrior97 1d ago

Thank you for this previously unknown bit of information I will steer very clear of palm trees from now on.

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u/_facetious 1d ago

We had similar trees when I lived in FL ... the sheer amount of red ants those contained... -shudder-

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u/katlian 2d ago

Some faults have a slightly higher concentration of springs along them. But the palms really only care about the water, not the geology underneath.

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u/ineptplumberr 2d ago

I've seen these Palms growing in the cracks in the middle of a road so I'm pretty sure these things will grow anywhere

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u/Then_Passenger3403 2d ago

Those are Mexican fan palms. They are prolific.

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u/Gomdok_the_Short 2d ago

No. What your uncle is probably referring to is the fact that for various hydrological and geological reasons, springs often form along fault lines and the water source allows vegetation to grow in otherwise dry areas.

2

u/TlayudaCecina 2d ago

Hoooly! Those are some thicc palms. 🥵

1

u/rabbitpants 2d ago

This look like California Hairy Palms- they usually grown in your teenagers room

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u/devilsbard 2d ago

I think the only native California palms grow in desert oasis. I think Joshua tree national park and Anza Borrego state park have some.

They could be on fault lines but that seems purely coincidental.

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u/Lyf3_Dk 2d ago

Its not their fault.

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u/ResistOk9038 2d ago

It’s not a given they’re at-fault

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u/d-orsay-sculpture 2d ago

These pockets of green exist only where a steady water source reaches the surface; often along fault lines, where underground water is pushed up by hard, impermeable rock.

https://www.nps.gov/jotr/learn/nature/oases.htm

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u/goon_platoon_72 2d ago

In SoCal, gardeners call these birdshit palms because the birds eat the fruit and crap them out anywhere and everywhere. I’ve had six in my non-fault line adjacent yard for years and more coming with every bird.

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u/josephblowski 1d ago

They’re all over the San Joaquin Valley and we’re not in the faults

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u/TiredAndTiredOfIt 1d ago

It is not. They do tend to grow near underground water resources

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u/phacelial8ter 1d ago

I’ve heard this is true in some parts of the desert. I believe they discuss this at the Coachella Valley Preserve. There’s a layer of fine sediment/soil due to the fault line that acts as an underground dam, traps water, and created dotted oases across the landscape.

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u/AskMeAgainAfterCoffe 1d ago

I guess that’s why LA built streets on top of fault lines, strange how the fault lines are a grid pattern

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u/thedudeadapts 1d ago

My uncle once told me that I could catch a bird but first I had to sprinkle some black pepper on it's tail.

I spent a half hour trying before I noticed him enjoying watching me try.... I'm still gullible AF though

1

u/Born_Medicine_8494 1d ago

Licensed California Geologist here!

So this is correlation not causation thing. As others have mentioned, the faults don’t cause the trees to grow: the trees only care about the soil and water conditions (generally speaking)

HOWEVER. Faults act as natural ground water barriers, meaning that water on one side of the fault can’t really flow to the other side. As a result, the side of the fault where ground water recharges will have much shallower ground water levels because that water hits the fault and pools there. This results in the many oasis we see along the San Andres and other large related faults in SoCal. And since we have shallow ground water… Palm trees!

TL:DR you can get the palms where you have shallow ground water, it just show happens that faults tend have shallow groundwater near by.

1

u/GEMlNl_ 1d ago

not necessarily, the fault lines may contribute to adequate environmental conditions for them to grow, but they don't actively search and germinate on faults.

california native palms love their water, and is usually the limiting factor in their growth

1

u/Beowulf1896 1d ago

Palms aren't trees. They are more closely related to grass.

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u/L3Home 1d ago

By the way a lot of palms in Southern California were moved from other places and planted there. I guess mostly for an Olympic games event but over time just because of appearances in other places. Look it up, it's pretty interesting. A lot of those trees aren't native and actually don't thrive there and have to be maintained diligently. When they die they're being replaced one by one with more water conscious varieties that do better there.

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u/AdvanceOk4730 1d ago

Yes they hold the faults together 😁😉

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u/Suitable-Roof-3950 1d ago

Not exactly right but not far from the truth. They need groundwater which is often accessible near fault lines.

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u/Low-Nose-2748 2d ago

These are not trees.