Part of the Palm family (Arecaceae), members of the Butia genus are called "feather" palms, because of their leaf shape, and consist of 22 species. Butia odorata is the most cold-hardy. The flowers are pale yellow to reddish, with 3 petals and 3 sepals, on many strands connected to a central stalk. Separate male and female flowers are grouped in threes - two male flowers and one female. Male flowers have 6 stamens. This inflorescence is enclosed in a woody spathe which splits apart when the flowers are ready to open in the spring.
This palm is self-pollinating. It first produces fruit when 8-10 years old. The fruit are yellow to orange, round to oval, 1" in diameter, with a single round seed and fibrous flesh, hanging in large sprays. They have a sweet-tart, mixed-fruit taste which has been compared to apricot, pineapple and banana, or mango and peach. Fruit quality varies from plant to plant. It takes 3-4 months for fruit to ripen, at which point they are fully colored, sometimes with a slight blush. They ripen a few at a time, and fall off the stem onto the ground after a few days of being fully ripe. One palm may produce 50-100 pounds of fruit.
The feather palm leaves are blue-green to silver, long, and arching. The v-shaped central stalk has long, narrow leaflets growing along both edges. The leaf stems have thorns. The trunk is 1' - 2' in diameter.
