Leaning King Palms - Problem?

Hello,

Here is a photo of the king palm in question. It was planted 7 months ago and has been doing pretty well. It has put out 2 or 3 new leaves since then, and I usually have these long 'spears' that eventually turn into the palm frond. The spears typically stand very straight. Recently I noticed that this one had it's spears starting to lean in. Is this a sign of something happening? Not enough water maybe as I cut back the watering in this bed? I have another king in a different part of my yard that was planted at the same time who's 'spears' have never opened in the same 7 months but otherwise the tree is unchanged - is that something to be concerned about? I was warned by my landscaper that they never look that great when they're first transplanted.

For site conditions, I try to keep the soil moist since I've heard that they like lots of water. I also have mulched around the base and added furtilizer: "Gro Power Palm and Tropical 9-3-9". They also have an aerator placed by my landscaper about 18" from the trunk.

I really appreciate any advise or comments to help out. I love my palms and would even like to plant a few more. They are so beautiful and really make a striking tropical presence in my landscape.

Thanks a bunch! Christina

I just read this over in Tropicals...
Palmbob said:
Making queen palms curve like that can be tricky... most growers who sell them curved plant them in boxes and lay them on their sides, and you get a curve that way. But natural curving of the trunk can happen sometimes, too... just not as dependable as say a bunch of King palms planted next to each other- they will almost always curve away from each other.

thanks very much for the info. I should probably email him as I've read his posts before and he seems to have his act together with palms. On mine it's actually the new shoot that's curved which is unusual and makes me worried that it's suffering.

King palms can be touchy palms sometimes... especially if you are transplanting or moving larger ones (I recommend only deal with 5 gal palms or smaller, unless you have professionals helping you, with large equipment).

But either way, the leaning spikes/spears don't bother me unless they look like they're rotting or getting weak at the base. Then there's something going on in the bud, like a rot or bugs or something like that. Be sure you are not watering your palms from overhead (in other words, avoid getting the part where the spear comes out wet very often, with tap water at least- rain water is fine). Overhead watering has killed many a king palm.

Also, for the one that is in a 'coma', don't worry about it too much yet, unless it looks like it's dying. Check the spear and give it a good tug (not too hard) and see if it's loose or comes out in your hand. If so, time to start over. If it's solidly in place, just wait. Maybe your king was in a 15 gal or larger pot? Many go through a terrible shock and it can take over a year sometimes for them to 'wake up'. I have a foxtail palm that is still pretty healthy and the spike is OK, yet same spike as when I planted it a year ago (though new spikes are catching up)... just means something about the planting or your new soil has shocked the palm and now it has to recover. Don't over fertilize! Right now, if your palm is just 'thinking' about getting going, the last thing it needs is to have its roots burned by a load of fertilizer. ONly fertlize palms that are obviously growing well. And underwatering a king is not that easy- unless just planted- they will look underwatered if they are (leaves will shrivel up and die). On the other hand, if planted in well draining soil, overwatering a king palm, at least once established, is near impossible in southern California (in mud, or if you are simply drowning it, the trunks may split a bit).

A spike leaning in not usually a sign of a water problem. It may just be a sign the palm wants to grow in a slightly different direction.

Thank you thank you for the great advice! I am so relieved that all is probably fine. They were pretty large trees, yet they were planted professionally so they probably do need a period of adjustment. The one in the 'coma' is in a different area than the others, which is more shady, and I think the pot was a little smaller so perhaps it just hasn't caught up. It's definitely not dying that I know of. (knocking on wood) I've only furtlized once so far as it said to only do it every four months. Perhaps I'll see if it's woken up first before I do it again.

Thanks again for setting my mind at ease! I really appreciate the help!

Hello again,

Here's a follow up to the 'leaning palm' question, and then a new quesiton about another.

The leaning palm worked itself out just fine. One of the spikes pictures has opened into a new leaf and the other is just starting to. It sure takes a long time for them to open!

I now have another issue with a different king. One of them has lost all it's leaves but one, and there is a new spike that hasn't opened. My gardener said it was being overwatered and changed some of the sprinklers heads to divert much of the water. I have an aerator near the root ball and when you look down into it there is in fact water at the bottom so for now we're just letting it dry out a bit. Hopefully it hasn't been drowned and will recover. I hate my soil as it's clay. We replaced roughly 2 1/2 times the size of the pot with good soil and gypsum but you can only go down so far.

So do have a prayer? I remember reading that palms like lots of water, so I didn't think it was possible to overwater it. Ironically all the plants on the same sprinkler line have never looked better (african daisy ground cover, a bunch of bulbs, agapanthus, giant tree fern, cannas).

Advice?

Thank you! Ü

This message was edited Feb 27, 2006 7:38 AM

This message was edited Mar 13, 2006 1:48 PM

Hi cnswift,

It sounds like your King Palm may have lost alot of roots. Try mixing a bit of oxygen-plus with a litre or 2 of water. This will reduce a bit of the rotting as it puts oxygen right at the roots. From my experience, when a palm has gone that far, there's not much left to hold onto....but there is a chance. Keeping it dryer is going to help.

Also there's the new Palm & Cycad forum so you might want to also ask there.

Thank you for the suggestion, I'll give it a go.

I thought I might post a series of photos for reference. I'm still really anxious to hear advice from anyone else that might have solutions. I ordered the oxygen plus, but it says it's for houseplants so I'm not sure how effective it will be. Thank you thank you!!!! :)

This message was edited Mar 13, 2006 1:59 PM

photo 2

photo 3

photo 4

and the last one... Thanks for hanging in there with me. :)