Phoenix canariensis, commonly called Canary Island date palm, is a large evergreen palm tree with a massive trunk that matures to 40-60' (less frequently to as much as 90') tall. Notwithstanding size, this palm is a slow grower which may only reach 10' tall over the first 15 years. The trunk is topped with a rounded crown of upright arching palmate leaves which gracefully spread to 20-40' wide. Although native to the Canary Islands, this palm is now grown in frost-free areas around the world. In the U. S., it is grown in Florida, Georgia (southern coast), Gulf Coast, Texas (southern), Arizona, Nevada and California. It will grow in Hawaii, but distribution there appears to be limited. This palm is noted for having a massive, thick, columnar, single, gray-brown trunk (matures to as much as 4' in diameter) with distinctive diamond-shaped leaf base scars. Trunk is topped by arching pinnate fronds (each to 15-20' long). Each frond has 80-100 rigid, narrow, lanceolate leaflets (to 12-18" long) on each side of the central rachis. The leafless lower portion of each petiole is covered with sharp thorns (2-3" long). Creamy white to pale yellow flowers in dense, pendant panicles (to 3-4' long) bloom on male and female plants (dioecious) intermittently throughout the year. Flowers on female palms are followed by yellow-orange, date-like fruits (to 1" long) which are ornamentally showy but poor-tasting to the point of being only technically edible.