Palmetum

Palmetum. Edison’s Tradition of Planting Palms in Fort Myers. , “If it is agreeable to the town, I will have royal palms planted on both sides of the road." -Thomas Edison, in a 1907 letter to city leaders, The City of Palms , With the above words, Edison began an effort to beautify Fort Myers. While it took several years and thousands of palms, Edison lined one mile of the road which ran through his property (today known as McGregor Boulevard) with palms. His efforts led to Fort Myers being nicknamed "The City of Palms." Currently McGregor Boulevard is lined with over 14 miles of Royal Palms., What is a Palmetum? , A Palmetum is an area where palms are grown for botanical or ornamental purposes., The Edison family enjoyed many species of palms on their property, including some of the palms you see in this Palmetum, like the princess and the solitaire palm tree., Fun Facts: , . Palms are monocots: unlike woody plants, their stems are living fibers , . Palms are more closely related to corn and grass than oaks. , . There are more than 100 palm species here on site., (caption) , Above: Edison stands next to a palm on his Fort Myers estate in 1915. , Left: Compare the towering palms lining McGregor Boulevard with the recently planted palms shown here circa 1910.