))I summarize here the main features of S. minor structure that I didn't take into account. (I'll refer to palms generally, ignoring the special exceptions.)
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All growth in palms originates from a single point, the apical meristem (also known as the (terminal) bud or heart). In S. minor this growth bud is well below ground, with new leaves (fronds) originating below the soil surface and emerging from an underground trunk (stem). The youngest, unopened leaf, the spear leaf, arises at the apical meristem in the center of the underground trunk, surrounded by layers of previous leaf petioles (leafstalks), which serve to protect the growth bud. In the picture on the right the petioles of earlier leaves can be seen arising from some distance below ground level. |
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| Spear leaf | Underground petioles | ||
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Palms are unlike many other familar plants, even other monocotyledons, which have multiple growth buds. With these damage to the apical meristem may lead to other primary growth being shifted to a secondary bud. With the soaptree yucca (Yucca elata), also a monocot, fire damage to the apical meristem may result in regrowth from an unburned portion of the stem. Damage to a palm's growth bud will cause growth to cease, and the eventual (although perhaps not rapid) death of the palm.
On the other hand, damage to a palms roots, even those of a Sabal, is not necessarily fatal. Cf. Pittenger et al., "Palm Root Regeneration and Its Significance in Transplanting":
There has been limited study on the distribution and growth of palm roots in relation to the survival and reestablishment of large, transplanted, field-grown trees. Research on field-grown trees in Florida found that the branching response of cut roots varies among palm species. In Sabal palmetto nearly all of the roots cut during transplanting died completely, and this species essentially generated a new root system from the base of the trunk to survive.