I found out what is happening to my palm trees! At this moment two of the palm trees are down to only the center being green. The rest of the leaves are brown. But one of them is healthier than ever. So I studied the root system and found out that one of the palm trees is completely choking the roots out of the other two. This is why the other palms are dying while one of them is bigger than ever. the problem is, they were planted way to closed to each other, and now that they are older the roots are thicker and the plants were fighting for root space, and one won the fight. i am just wondering, if I cut some of the roots of the other palm could I save them or end up killing the healthy, strong one? has any one has this problem with palm tree trios being too close to each other? hope someone can help!

To be clear, I'm talking about Adonidia merrillii, Manilla/Christmas Palm. I've never cut any open so don't know how they should look inside. Generally, they are quite easy to grow from seed. But if the seed is old and has been laying in the full sun for a long time it may be dead. I've collected them around the time they fell and got a very good germination rate. Only problem was that some sort of rodent also liked the seed and when it found the newly sprouted seedlings managed to destroy most of them before I managed to protect the rest. It's worth a try to germinate them, but if you don't get results in about 4 weeks then probably they aren 't viable.

Those are individual plants. Palm growers plant several seedlings in a pot to get a clump like that. I can only tell you how I've seen it done at nurseries I've worked at. The pot will be pretty rootbound. If there is a mass of roots around the sides and you can't "tease" the plants apart, just slice about 1/4 inch off the sides and about 1/2 inch off the bottom to free up the root ball. Then bang the root ball on the ground hard until the root ball loosens up. Then try to tease the plants apart. You can use a turning fork or pitchfork to work in between the plants and separate them. You're going to damage some roots, but that's o.k. Once you get them separated (this may take awhile, so be patient), cut off all but the top three fronds, in other words, "rooster tail" each plant. Prune the bottom half off of the largest bottom frond. Put them into individual pots or where you want them to be, and water well. If you just want to make two separate clumps, slice the ball in two, tease the bottom roots out and plant each clump individually.

I have a 3-bedroom house in Cathedral City with a heated pool and hot tub/spa, but it's urban, and so you would not be interested. Also, we cannot rent it at the moment because there is a moratorium on new STVR's (short term vacation rentals) in Cathedral City, although that is supposed to be lifted by the end of the year. My brother and I stayed in the Donovan Suite at the Joshua Tree Inn a couple of years ago and loved it, but the pool is not heated and there is no hot tub/spa. We were there for Thanksgiving, but this Thanksgiving we will be at our house in CC, doing some work and visiting Joshua Tree and/or Anza Borrego. You might want to consider Anza Borrego, because it does have hot springs in Agua Caliente County Park. The scenery is great, and there is a special trail for hiking during the full moon - it is very surreal, and you do not need flashlights. Unfortunately, around Christmas this year, there will be a new moon. Also, you would need a tent or an RV to stay at the county park, but there are motels/resorts nearby in Borrego Springs. I would recommend avoiding Indio and 29 Palms. If you do go to Joshua Tree, you can visit La Copine Restaurant in Yucca Valley, which is now accepting reservations, which would be a must. It is very close to the Integratron in Landers, which you could visit for a sound bath - reservations also needed. After having a sound bath there, my arthritis pain was completely gone and did not return for a week. Since then I have lost weight, and that also got rid of my arthritis pain. There are some decent restaurants in Joshua Tree, including a good Thai restaurant, but they do get crowded, especially during holidays. Best to arrive early, as most people seem to eat late.