Palm Tree Coloring Page

This palm tree coloring page takes you to a quiet beach at sunset. A big palm leans over the sand on the left, and a smaller one stands on the right with a striped hammock tied between them. The sun sits low on the water, and its rays fan out across the whole sky. Bars of gold light float on the sea, and a little sailboat heads for home.

It suits older kids, teens and adults. Give it an hour or two, or spread it over a few evenings. The leaves have plenty of small points, and the sky works best when you take your time.

What makes this scene special

The sky is the first thing you notice. Eighteen rays spread out from the sun, each one a closed shape of its own. Color them all alike or change the color every time. Either way, you end up with a bold poster look.

The big palm has a ringed trunk, with bands that get closer together toward the top. Its crown holds a cluster of coconuts and eight wide fronds. Each frond has a center rib and a jagged edge, so you can give the top of the crown a lighter green than the leaves that hang low.

Down on the sand, a small crab waves its claws near two fallen coconuts. A starfish and a few shells lie along the bottom. Grains of sand are marked with small dots all the way across.

Palm tree coloring page color ideas

For a warm evening, work from the sun outward. Yellow goes closest to it, then peach, soft pink and pale lavender at the top corners. Keep the sun itself a strong orange with a gold ring around it.

The sea can stay cool to balance all that warmth. Use teal and two soft blues, then drop bright yellow into the four bars of light. That contrast makes the sunset glow.

Try a night version if you want a change. Color the sky dark blue and purple, turn the half circle into a rising moon and make the bars on the water silver. The palms can be nearly black against the sky, which looks striking on a wall.

Tips for detailed leaves

• Sharpen your pencil often. The points on the fronds need a fine tip.
• Color from the rib of each frond toward the edge, in short strokes that follow the leaf.
• Use two greens on the crown. Dark leaves behind and light leaves in front add depth.
• Shade the trunk darker on the left side, away from the sun.
• Rest your hand on a scrap of paper, so it does not smear the sky.

Palm facts worth knowing

The palm family is huge. There are about 2,600 species in 181 groups, and most grow in warm, tropical places. A few can even live in deserts.

Palms are not like an oak or a maple. They do not form yearly growth rings inside the trunk, so you cannot count rings to learn their age. The tallest of all is a wax palm from Colombia, where it is the national tree. It can reach about 197 feet. That is about as tall as 33 grown ups standing on each other's heads!

A slow project for after dinner

Coloring one small part each night is a nice habit. Do the sand on the first night, the sea on the second, then the sky. Finish with the palms. By the weekend, you will have a framed piece for the hall.

Kids in a class can use the sheet to study warm and cool colors. Ask them to use only warm colors above the water and only cool ones below it. Then hang the results side by side.

A short writing idea also fits here. Who tied that hammock, and where did they go? Write the answer on the back of the page.

More pages for a quiet hour

The summer mandala coloring page is another good pick for grown ups. If you want a bright, simple bird in the same setting, try the flamingo coloring page.

Questions