What's up with my Trachy?

[Randy]

Greetings all,

This is my first ever post so hopefully it'll work ok. The pictures below are of my 5-foot tree which I transplanted outside back in late March. From reading the forum I'm thinking its appearance may be the result of our upper 90's temperatures and extreme drought during July and August. I followed the transplanting instructions precisely and watered it thoroughly twice a week for the first 4 months. I then cut back to a long, slow drenching once a week. I first noticed the older, lower fronds looking brown and dead about 2 weeks ago. I cut them off last week. The new growth looks dark green and healthy, but most of the remaining older fronds appear to be dying. I'd love to hear form anyone out there who could tell me what happened and, hopefully, that my tree should be ok.

Thanks,

Randy

[dilbert]

I can only guess as I never lived in a warm region like you. (Unfortunately, I must admit. Overall if I'm looking out of the window.)

If there hasn't come any toxic substances to the roots I would say it has simply been too hot and/or too dry. As long as the spearheads look fine and greenish I wouldn't worry too much. Probably they got now plenty of time to grow during the winter.

[turtile]

My guess is that the root system still hasn't recovered fully. Since you've been having a drought, the root system cannot supply enough water to the leaves which is causing them to die.

Unless you give it a long watering (couple hours) to allow the water to penetrate deeply, only the top 1-3inches will become wet which will either not help the palm at all or cause the roots to push upwards.

[Randy]

Thanks for the insight. I feel better now that someone concurs with my idea about the heat and drought theory. It still hasn't rained much lately, but I make sure to give it a nice, l-o-n-g hose drenching at the base at least twice a week. The one thing I remember the seller telling me over and over is "Keep it watered and don't let it dry out!" I guess I picked up a fear of over-watering from back in my potted palm years from drowning several. I'm also keeping an eye on the new growth because as long as that continues to look green and healthy I can pretty much relax and just let it recover. I know you true 'northerners' will laugh, but it actually does get cold up here in "north" Alabama... sometimes. I can remember a few times when we got into the single digits, but for the most part a 'hard freeze' here is the low 20's. Anything lower than that and the schools close. I'm glad I found this forum. I'll rest easier knowing there's some knowledge available in case anything happens. I'll be checking in here often so any other advice and / or comments are always invited! Thanks!! Randy

[Wes North Van]

These palms need a lot of water. Hence the reason they grow so well in the PNW.
Trachies look better here in Vancouver than they do in Las Vegas or Southern California.
You have to provide it with lots of water during dry hot spells.
They will not however survive if their roots are drowning in water so the soil must drain well.

Good Luck

[Randy]

I used quite a bit of gravel at the bottom of the hole and it is planted on a slight grade. I feel pretty good about the drainage although I think it'll take some time and experience to know just the right amount to water it. Of course, it will need less during the winter. If I had kept up the twice a week 2-hour slow soakings I started out with I think I could have avoided this incident altogether. Also, I know I'll need to add about 5 or 6 inches of mulch around the base for winter, but should I keep it mulched during the summer months? Come to think of it, I didn't notice the first signs of the browning fronds until a month or so after I removed the mulch from when I first set it out. Thanks, Randy

[turtile]

Mulch is good to have in the summer. It keeps the roots from getting too hot during the day and keeps it warm into night. It helps hold moisture too.

[Randy]

Unless you give it a long watering (couple hours) to allow the water to penetrate deeply, only the top 1-3inches will become wet which will either not help the palm at all or cause the roots to push upwards.

This may be a real beginner's question, but since the soil close to the base of the tree is still fairly loose from planting, how would it work to stick the hose down in the ground about a foot or so and let it soak this way for a while every few days?

[turtile]

This may be a real beginner's question, but since the soil close to the base of the tree is still fairly loose from planting, how would it work to stick the hose down in the ground about a foot or so and let it soak this way for a while every few days?

Water should be applied around the drip line (where the water rolls off of the leaves) since the tips of the root system will be located there (absorb more water and nutrients - better/larger root system).

You can place a soaker hose around the drip line.

[Randy]

Thanks for the info. And finally, considering the time of year and the fact that it has only had about 6 months to adjust to its new environment, how long should I wait before cutting off those three worst-looking fronds? Although they are now almost totally dark brown, they are still upright and I don't want to do anything that would affect the shape of the trunk in later years or make the tree look worse now for that matter. I'm leaning towards waiting until the new growth forces them out and towards the ground - or does it matter?

[turtile]

Cut off any completely dead areas. Do not cut off anything that has some sort of life to it.

The dead material can be a good area for disease to develop and break it down (which can spread to living tissue when the plant is weak).

[Randy]

Well, after a few days of rain I was greeted with a welcome site as I checked on my tree this morning. There are two nice green spears rising up from the center crown; one small and the other fairly large. After I trimmed away some of the dead fronds last week I just left it on its own and continued to be very concerned about its potential recovery. Is there any advice other than to keep it mulched and protected in case of severe cold this first winter since it is already stressed? I feel more encouraged now that it's gonna make it.

Randy

[lucky1]

Hi Randy, welcome to the forum.
Great bunch here, you'll love 'em.

Glad your trachy is looking better today.
With two spears coming, it has settled nicely into its new home.

I'm in Canada and trying to imagine severe cold in Atlanta.
Couldn't resist that, Randy!

Barb

[Randy]

Hi Barb,

Thanks for the reply. When I set the little palm out beside our driveway back in April it was about 5' tall with deep green fans and it really got the attention from neighbors and people driving by. Every time my wife drove past it she'd make some comment about how nice it looked. Since this happend she refers to it only as "the poor little thing". Those new spears made us both feel much better, not just because it was an expensive tree but it quickly became 'part of the family'. I can always call the lady at the nursery but it's really great to have folks here who share my interest in palm trees and the challenge to grow them outside their 'normal' habitats. By the way... Gadsden (Alabama) is about 100 miles NORTH west of Atlanta. Temps can plunge into the low 40's here before we know it!

Randy

[lucky1]

Randy that "part of the family" thingy about your palm means one thing. You belong on this forum!

I simply had to razz you about your "cold".
I know it gets cold down south...you should see what we Canadians pay for orange juice when there's a freeze!

Agree with your Trachy needing mulch and lots of water particularly in summer. Unlike other palms, Trachies don't need a lot of heat.

Have been lucky to visit Atlanta for 2 days. Wonderful people, great nightlife. There was an architectural scrap yard on a highway where we stopped to visit. It was wonderful, everything from clawfoot bath tubs to gargoyles. And the adjacent building had many outstanding antique cars displayed.

When flying into Atlanta, I wondered where everybody LIVED. Didn't realize until we rented a car that those wonderful huge ancient oak trees were underplanted with HOUSES...

Do you have other palms or cycads?
Barb

[Randy]

The "poor little thing" is my only palm right now. But tomorrow we're headed down to Destin for the weekend so that 'could' change. I've had an assortment over time starting with one of those little souvenir palms in a box such as you would find in stops along the Florida highways. Before the Trachy I had a beautiful Pigmy Date Palm which I wintered in the sunroom for two years. I set it on the patio last spring and for some reason it just started going downhill until it finally died last month. That's why I became so concerned after my Trachy took on much the same appearance. My most memorable examples were the two I had at our previous home. Both were planted outside and the needle palm, which I dug up on the side of road in Florida, survived being buried under 3 feet of snow and a week-long hard freeze during the blizzard of '93. (Yes, we really had one!) The other wasn't so fortunate. It was a fan-type palm similar to a smaller Trachy. Back then I knew zilch about palms so I can't say exactly what it was. As comparably mild as our temperatures are, friends and neighbors laughed and joked at me last spring for planting a palm tree outside in Gadsden. You don't start to see any 'real' palm trees until you get a couple hundred miles south, and the average local would say they won't grow here. I had never heard of 'cold palms' until this year.

Randy

[turtile]

Wait until late spring to plant cold hardy palms. It gives them time to establish.

My suggestion would be Sabal Minor. Its tolerant of drought, floods, loves heat and can take extreme cold once established.

Here are Trachycarpus growing in Delaware (few miles from my house):

[Randy]

Those are nice Trachys. It's also encouragement for us greenies down here who used to think that anything lower than 32F would kill any palm. Hopefully, transplanting mine last April gave it 7 warm months to establish enough to help it through this stress period. It also taught me that these trees need a LOT of water... especially in full sun during a drought and heat wave. I was also encouraged yesterday when after a steady, all-day rain there was water standing in my yard about 30 feet downgrade from where the palm is planted. That means I should have sufficient drainage.

Randy