Palmyra palm grows upto 30 m hight, with a straight trunk.

In India, it is planted as a windbreak on the plains. It is also used as a natural shelter by birds, bats and wild animals.

The leaves have long stalks, are fan-shaped and are arranged in a crown at the top of the stem.

The flowers are produced in big clusters of long, white string-like inflorences. The male and female flowers grow on separate trees. Flowering begins in March/April and the fruits ripen in May/June. All the flowers open at the same time.

The fruits commonly known as Tadgola are rounded, dark purple or black and smooth drupes 15-20 cm in diameter, containing 1-3 white flexy kernels. The kernel is very soft and sweet, it is relished in the initial stages, but becomes hard and unpalatable on maturity.

The chief product of the palmyra is the sweet sap (toddy) obtained by tapping the tip of the inflorescence.The toddy ferments naturally within a few hours after sunrise and is locally popular as a beverage. Rubbing the inside of the toddy-collecting receptacle with lime paste prevents fermentation, and thereafter the sap is referred to as sweet toddy, which yields concentrated or crude sugar, molasses, palm candy and vinegar. Palmyra palm jaggery (gur) is much more nutritious than crude cane sugar.

The wood of Palmyra is used for construction works, for rafters and its stems after removing central pith are used as water conduits. Leaves are used for thatching houses. In older times, the leaves were used for writing manuscripts of sacred books and were called 'Talpatra'.