Palm Tree Maintenance
There is a lot that goes into introducing palms into a garden or landscape. An analysis of the site, understanding the client’s expectations, and the site design are essential to deciding which palms to recommend.
Different palms offer a different result. The planning thereof will make the long term aesthetics of the site and design last long term.
Selecting your palm suppliers carefully is essential when making the purchase decision. Do diligent inspections of the plants to ensure you are getting decent quality. Cheaper options may be of more inferior quality but will perform badly once planted in the landscape. Arranging or managing proper transportation of the palms is critical. Palms can be damaged if not handles correctly.
Many people make the mistake of planting palms too deep in the soil. Digging the initial hole too deeply can restrict and slow the palm’s growth and ultimately ruin the overall aesthetic of the landscape, especially in the early years.
Spending time cultivating the landscape site early on and for the first number of years can help ensure the site’s successful growth and provide the best results overall.
How to prune your palms for best success
To keep your palms and cycads looking attractive, regular pruning is recommended. Most people leave them alone, thinking they are low maintenance plants, but they need some TLC.
Palms regularly turn over their foliage. They produce a set number of fronds. These are the new shoots that grow out of the top of the plant. As new ones replace older fronds, they turn yellow and die. These are not required for the plant to be healthy and can be removed.
If the plant is producing a high number of these older and yellow fronds, you will need to determine the cause before pruning. If your soil has a potassium or magnesium deficiency, this can be detrimental to the health of your palm. Adding the wrong type of fertilizer can make the matter worse. Over pruning, a plant that is already battling can exacerbate the issue.
You will need to prune your palms in the following situations:
- If your palm has an excessive amount of dead or dying fronds, you can improve the palm’s overall appearance.
- Having dead or dying fronds that are loose or weakly attached to the palm can be a danger or hazard to people or your property. Some of these fronds can be heavy and cause severe injury or damage. Regularly removing them can reduce this risk.
- Some palms produce fruit clusters. In public area s where falling fruit and flower debris can be hazardous and messy, removing these flowers or fruit reduces the seedlings grown.
- Pruning the sprouts from the base of the trunk will prevent unwanted shoots from developing and ruining the landscape’s aesthetics.
Identifying the live fronds from the dead ones will help you only to remove the fronds that should be removed. Cutting healthy fronds can cause issues down the line. If they have to be removed, avoid removing any that are growing up or horizontally. When trimming them, using a small chain saw to cut any developing or fruit stalks that emerge between the live fronds will avoid injuring the surrounding healthy fronds.
Try to cut them close to the petiole base without damaging any living trunk tissue. It is not necessary to shave or sand the trunk smooth at all.
Regular upkeep and detailed pruning of your palms will extend their lives, improve their appearance, and keep your surrounding property safe and clean.
It is worth investing in some sharp tools used for the pruning to make the job easier for you.
Taking this extra care rewards you with beautiful, healthy palms.
Contact Lucky Tree Service on 561-300-TREE for all your Palm Tree Maintenance needs.
