Look at meeee!!

I always know when one of my palm trees in my garden is in flower.
I think it's a Coccothrinax barbadensis, but I'm not certain. 
I can smell the heady scent of the flowers (which emerge overnight) as soon as I open my kitchen window for the day.
It's a magic act, in the evening there is absolutely no hint of a flower, but by the following morning the inflorescence has emerged with a delightful perfume.
It's an overpowering scent, and smells like vanilla mixed with cotton candy. The next thing I hear are the bees, that congregate around the flowers in droves gathering the sweet nectar.
This palm is one of my favourites, and was given to me many years ago by two dear friends who live on the south coast of the island.  It was supposed to be a baby palm, but I remember trying to stuff it into my vehicle for the ride home...very daring I might add, since there was no way I could see out the back window with the palm inside.
This morning, when I looked out it stood quite proudly while displaying its new flowers like a peacock with feathers spread in all its glory....Look at meeee!!!

 

 

Lovely smelling flowers 

But look at what else is in there.  A well hidden bird's nest among the thatch.

Camouflage at its best

 A nice clean trunk

My plant buddy came by one afternoon recently and cleared the trunk of all the fibre thatch to use in potting her orchids.
This palm is a joy to have in my garden.  It provides a safe haven for the sparrows, berries for the birds, fibre matting for potting, and of course the lovely scent from its flowers which lasts for a couple of days.
My garden would be incomplete without it.