Barb,
I have been. Yesterday I took some of Schippia concolor in habitat. I am up in the mountains where the dominant vegetation is pine and oak, but with palmettos. It reminds me of parts of Florida.
I won't upload any until I get home, most likely. I am taking low-resolution shots, but the internet speeds in the jungle are slow so it would take a lot of time.
--Erik

Steve,
I took some snapshots of Zamia for you this morning.
--Erik

Look forward to seeing them when you get back.

Barb

Thanks Erik!
Bring some of that warm weather back too 😆

Steve

Erik,
Have things slowed down enough on the farm for you to post the Belize pics?

Barb

Not yet as I had classes start up right away plus my older son visiting home from college.
I think I can go through photos tomorrow. --Erik

Here is what I think is a Schippia concolor:
<table style="width:auto;"><tr><td><a href=" http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/gLb2FeyQCh9rlZ7u3zFVdw?feat=embedwebsit e"><img src=" " /></a></td></tr><tr><td style="font-family:arial,sans-serif; font-size:11px; text-align:right">From <a href=" http://picasaweb.google.com/terdalfarm/Belize2010Favorites?feat=embedwebsit e">Belize 2010 favorites</a></td></tr></table>

Erik,

That palm has a lovely form...would look good beside a patio 🙂
Thanks!

Barb

Other than through the plant store at Belize Botanic Gardens, it is not really in cultivation. It grows slowly, which would discourage the plant trade. It is found in a wide variety of habitats in Belize. There may be more than one species/type/variety. I think some DNA-based work is being done on that topic but it has not been published.
Here is an older (1994) technical article and the basis for the claim that it is endemic to Belize:
https://nybg.org/files/scientists/mbalick/The%20Conservation%20Status%20of%20Schippia%20concolor%20in%20Belize.pdf
IMHO, the evidence is weak: nobody has really looked for it just across the border. The author went to a tourist site deep in the Peten of Guatemala and did not see any.
--Erik

Since it didn't evolve in isolation, it's a sure bet it grows/grew in other countries of similar latitude.
Likely yet another victim of deforestation.
I find its appearance striking.

Find any seeds by chance?
Barb

I know this sounds lame, but I didn't look. I was pretty focused on work. 😥
I'll be back in the area in March and will try to do better.
I mostly want to grow a cohune palm. The one time I brought seeds back they didn't germinate, but I did not have the expert resources of this site. I want to try cohune as it is the most important palm to the Maya, plus is supposed to be Zone 9 hardy in Florida. I'd still keep 'em in pots, but I like the insurance of knowing they can survive un-expected cold weather in October and April.
--Erik

I don't blame you Erik.
Neither would I...I'd be sweatin' buckets worried about a bad-tempered xateros.

Barb

I won't have time to cross the border in March (my next trip) but maybe I'll do that in the future. It just doesn't make sense to me that Schippia would be widespread in Belize but be unknown outside that tiny country.

Here is a snapshot I took of a garden in a Maya village:

http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/cIZMC3mPCc8hNKF2cs_OaA?feat=directlink

She is growing roses in the rainforest! I find that as amazing as my palm trees up here.

The husband is a farmer, prosperous for his village. He has held elective office and is a community leader. He is the one I mentioned on another thread as growing Xate palm as an experimental crop; his livelihood is from corn, as it has been for Maya farmers for millenia.

When I complimented him on his garden he said it was his wife's work--he grew corn. She does all this gardening while raising 8 children in a two-room house. Here is her kitchen:

http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/rzRe0ZTo_IxGVIT-PpjGaQ?feat=directlink

Remember, these are middle class folks, not poor for their community. Cement block house, metal roof, bicycle for the kids, who all go to school.