Few People Know The Iconic Palm Trees In Southern California Were Actually Imported From Mexico
By Natasha Kayes|Published December 14, 2022
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Natasha Kayes
Author
I was born and raised in sunny Southern California and will never tire of the West Coast, although I spent several years living in Southeast Asia, about as far from California as you can get. Wherever I am in the world, I love straying from the beaten path, experiencing local life, and discovering hidden gems - camera in hand. The beach is my happy place and when I am not there (or writing), you will usually find me baking, watching movies, and cuddling my pugs. I have traveled around the country and around the world, and it never, ever gets old. Being able to combine my passion for travel and my love of writing is nothing short of a dream.
When people picture a typical Southern California scene, chances are they think of Hollywood, Beverly Hills, surfers, sandy beaches, and something they all seem to feature… palm trees. A picture of sunglass-clad drivers in convertibles cruising down a palm tree-lined street practically screams Los Angeles. But did you know that the now-iconic tall, slender palm trees in Los Angeles are not native to Southern California?
This familiar image that people everywhere seem to recognize reflects a purposeful design. Toward the beginning of the 20th century, palm trees had begun to symbolize warm, tropical places and exotic vacations, and Los Angeles wanted to be seen as just that type of destination.
And so it began. In the early 1930s, over 40,000 palm trees were imported from Mexico and planted along streets throughout the city.
The Mexican Fan Palm - the tree that has become a true Los Angeles icon and is still the most populous species of palm in Southern California - grows up to a towering 100 feet in height, and tends to bend and curve as it gets taller.
You will find many species of palm trees in Southern California, and almost all of them have been imported from somewhere else, from the tall and skinny Mexican Palms to the stout and leafy Mediterranean Palms to the feathery Canary Island Palms.
The Washington filifera - also called Desert Fan Palm, Cotton Palm, and California Fan Palm - is the only palm tree that is actually native to California, though not to Los Angeles.
As seen here, these palms, which tend to be shorter and wider than the Mexican palms that have a similar shape, grow in spring-fed oases in California’s Colorado and Mojave Deserts.
Palm trees actually started to be planted in the Los Angeles area in the late 1800s, first planted by Franciscan missionaries, apparently because of their Biblical association and significance with regard to Palm Sunday.
In the early 1900s, palm trees - especially Mexican Fan Palms, Mediterranean Palms, and Canary Island Palms - began to be used in residential landscaping in Los Angeles and surrounding areas.
What would a classic Southern California beach sunset be without a few palm tree silhouettes? And to think, they were not naturally part of this horizon.
The streets of Los Angeles may never have been lined with palm trees, but we just can’t imagine it any other way, can you? Did you know about the history of SoCal’s famous palm trees? Do you have any other fun facts about L.A.? We do! Check out these 13 things you may not know about SoCal.
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