Our beloved Swamp Cabbage Festival gets its name from the official state tree of Florida: Sabal Palm. This tree is very hardy and it can grow up to six inches per year, up to a total height of 100 feet! The tree’s more common name, the cabbage palm, comes from its edible “heart” which has a taste very similar to cabbage. The heart is actually a fruit that is white in color and hidden within layers of the tree that must be torn away or cut open. Raccoons love to eat this fruit and end up dispersing their seeds while foraging. For hundreds of years, cabbage palms have provided food and building materials to those living in modern-day Florida. Native American communities made great use of the cabbage palm, given its abundance and the quality of its wood for construction. The cabbage palm wood quality was proven further in the early days of the Revolutionary War as it was used in the construction of many coastal forts. Notably, a force of Patriots successfully repelled a British naval attack due to the sturdy construction of their fort thanks to the cabbage palm. In modern times, this tree has seen enormous popularity as an ornamental plant due to its beauty and resistance to environmental conditions. This honorable tree is resistant to hurricanes, sea spray, and temperatures down to around fifteen degrees!