Do you have a kentia palm and is there a fast growing palm?
meyermike_1micha
15 years ago
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Central_Cali369
15 years agoedbtz
15 years agoRelated Discussions
Kentia(Parlor) Palm not doing well?
Comments (6)Take it back and see if you can get a refund. It sounds like it is dead (dying actually). Palms have only one growing point. It that tip dies, the plant cannot branch and will die. When older leaves die, the palm is usually not dying but if the younger leaves have all died then that sounds like the palm's apical meristem is dead. The only hope is if the dead leaves were due to being moved in freezing weather, left outside in freezing air for more than a few minutes, or some other condition that just killed the more tender young leaves. This could also happen if the plant were suddenly exposed to full sun, thus burning the leaves. Inspect the tip growth. Give this a gentle tug. If all the emerging growth just pulls out, then its dead. But, don't pull it hard. It could be alive and then you could damage what's left. In any case you will have an unsightly palm for a long time--so see if you can get a refund. Jon...See MoreHelp! New Kentia Palm is dying!
Comments (20)I have five kentias, three in the ground in full sunlight, having planted them a few years ago. The other two are on the northern exposure side of my house, and are very slow growing. The three in full sun did well for about a year or so, then suffered mightily from a rare, rare cold snap here in Ventura back in February. But all in all, they're making a great comeback, and I look forward to their beautifull umbrella-like fronds restoring fully by next spring. I have over thirty palms, a few cycads, and a few ferns (Aussie Tree, Tasmanian, Meyers, etc, and the battle seems to be that, when growing tropical plants at 34 degrees north and beyond, one has to remember to be patient; this is not their home environment. They will grow slower, suffer setbacks, and generally be less vigorous as they slowly adapt to their new climate. Light level is very important, for in equatorial climes, the sun is almost directly overhead year round; thus the symmetry most tropical plants exhibit. And watering there is a daily thing - even the so-called "dry season" brings at least light rain each day. And so, consider that a palm or cycad or fern is being asked a lot when planting this far (or further) north - a good soaking once a week or so during summer, then back off during winter months, when most tropical plants nearly "shut down". All sorts of blogs have been posted, but it all comes down to this: Every plant on Earth has one thing in common - the roots seek water. Therefore, when planting or potting, always remember to put a good layer of sand beneath the root ball, and around it with about a 50/50 mix of sand and Cactus Mix around the sides of the planting hole when filling. Watering will thus suround the roots and leach downward and beyond the lower portions of the roots through the sand, causing the roots to "seek" the water below, establishing in not to much time a healthy root system....See MoreBest Palms from seed Zone 8 (fast growing tall cold hardy etc)
Comments (7)Joe, I live in the Myrtle Beach area also (Murrells Inlet). I have been growing different types of palms from seed for a while now. The trouble with palms are that the fast growing ones are not native to this area thus they have many problems such as cold in winter months, too humid in summer months. I would still recommend the washingtonia robusta (mexican fan palm), or the washingtonia filifera (california fan palm) they are the 2 fastest growing palms for this area with the robusta being the fastest. However the robusta is more sensitive to the cold so you must be prepared to protect it, especially while it is young, (would make a nice container palm for a couple of years). Now the filifera is more cold tolerant than the robusta but you need to remember it grows in a dry arid climate so it struggles with funggal attacks while it is young in our hot humid climate we have. The filifera grows somewhat slower than the robusta and you will still need to offer some protection while it is young from both cold and humidity. Pindo's grow slow but will not be hurt by our cold and after some time they can get to 20' tall. Sabal's are easy to grow from seed as well but will take some time to look like a palm. I am not an expert just some stuff that I have picked up from this board, I hope it helps. David Stallard...See MoreHow fast does a needle palm grow?
Comments (7)If you do think there is a good chance that your moving next year, I would keep it in a pot for the summer and bring it inside during the winter (if you have an unheated garage, that would be a good spot to put a potted needle palm in the winter months since it would see cold temperatures, but probably not temperatures significantly below freezing. My garage is unheated and rarely gets below 40F even during the worst of winter weather). At least you have a year to save up for a larger needle palm. If you move to VA, it would be much happier there anyways. Palms hate being dug up so I wouldnt plant anything in the ground unless I knew it would definitely be there for a number of years. -Alex...See Morestanofh 10a Hayward,Ca S.F. bay area
15 years agomeyermike_1micha
15 years agoCentral_Cali369
15 years agojkrup44
15 years agoUser
15 years agodavidcf
15 years agojoeladams
10 years ago
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stanofh 10a Hayward,Ca S.F. bay area