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Uh oh.....spots on my Pygmy Date Palm!

17 years ago

This is concerning my ailing indoor Pygmy Date Palm that I asked about in my last post. I had said that its leaves were browning/yellowing. NOW I see that some of the lower leaves have white spots on them, particularly on the undersides. The spots are able to be scrubbed off. It reminds me of powdery mildew somewhat. Is this a bug or fungus? How do I treat it?! I have some insecticidal soap which could work...

Thanks,

Casey

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Comments (3)

terryster
17 years ago
I think you might have mealybugs. You can take rubbing alcohol and water-equal parts and spray the bugs. Do this every few days as the new ones hatch. I would take regular water and rinse the leaves a day after spraying.

I was going to tell you as well, that Osmocote doesn't release under 70 degrees soil temp, and not sure what your soil temp is- if it is under 70 degrees then you might still have some of it in there in the spring-when you normally fert. So be careful about adding more fert then or you might burn the palm. I use a sulfur coated slow release that releases at about 45 degree soil temp. For palms, I use a 20-6-12
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andyandy
17 years ago
Try looking online for "All seasons Horticultural spray oil and or systemice granuals". The spray suffocates insects including meelybug. The granuals realease chemicals that the plant pulls up through the roots. I gave all of my palms a dose of the granuals back in late August. No bugs so far.
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My pygmy date palm has been in my living room for 2 years. I DO notice it has a nasty habit of collecting dust and being difficult to keep clean - the best way for me was to give it a day outside once in a while and hit it with the hose on a light spray. It has grown VERY slowly but leaves turning brown has been a continuing problem. I have had a wonderful experience with my spindle palm as an indoor palm - even in relatively low light areas. It continues to grow indoors, although very slowly - and is beautiful, majestic-looking, and the leaves stay nicely green for a long time. I find they aren't easy to find, but if you find one, a spindle palm has worked out great for me. btw good call on the majesty palm. They don't really like being indoors - although there is no way one would grow very fast indoors. Good part about majesty palms is they are disposably-priced :)
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I do think overwatering could be a problem. Its hard to overwater plants when its warm outside, but when its cool (60s and 70s) then many palms really dont require too much water (there are many exceptions, but Pygmy palms arent one of them!). Cut off all the dead fronds and if the lower fronds are yellow, cut those off as well. If all the fronds are yellow, that is a problem (likely an overwatering problem). I could be a nutrient problem that more magnesium and/or nitrogen should take care of. Sago palms are actually cycads (but thats fine here since this is a Palms and Cycads fourm!). They are one of the easiest plants you can care for. Basically do nothing and your good. If its very warm and dry outside, some water will be really good for it! Queen palms is one of the most beautiful palms you can own if its well taken care of, but easily one of the ugliest palms in the world without proper care. They will survive pretty much anything, but as far as looking good, they need a good amount of fertilizing during the warm weather months, and they definitely need a good amount of water on warm and sunny days. Prune off the dead fronds and after that, it should do very well! -Alex
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terryster
17 years ago
andy, what is the name of the systemic that you used-or the main chemical? I need to know the name of one for mealybugs! Do you remember how often you have to reapply it?

Casey-you can also use Neem oil, and as andy said-hort oil is good too-you just have to keep spraying it to follow the life cycle of the mealybug.
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