coconut palm not growing

12 years ago

Hello everyone,
I found a few coconuts a year ago at my local beach two of which sprouted but only one remains. It was growing quite vigorously for the first year, I transplanted it into a new yard in aug. and now it seems to have stopped growing. I don't know if it is because it is establishing new\more roots or if it is slowly dieing. Let me know if anyone has experience with this. Also, I am in south fl so it shouldn't be a climate issue.

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Comments (5)

tropicalzone7
12 years ago
Did it have roots when you transplanted it? Palms really struggle when their roots are disturbed so if you dug it up and it was already rooted, it could be in shock. If the roots were damaged and it's still alive, it will probably survive and keep growing if given good care, but it will be slow for a while and you might want to consider getting a new one just in case.
Good luck!
-Alex
evan28
Original Author
12 years ago
Yeah it had a pretty extensive root system for such a small/young tree. I bet that's what it was, cause as soon as I transplanted it it stopped growing. Thanks so much for the response!
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tropicalzone7
12 years ago
No problem! Good luck with it!
-Alex
coconut_palm
12 years ago
I hope you didin't grab it from the trunk, which could separate the sprout from the nut inside the husk, which will eventually lead to its death. Always grab a young coconut palm from the lower part of the husk and/or rootball.

Also, be sure to plant palms at the same depth they were originally growing at, not any deeper. Be sure to fertilize it with a good organic granular fertilzer in a 6-2-4 or 8-4-6 ratio with micronutrients in late Feb., late June, and late Oct. Also, you can use an organic foliar spray fertilizer in a ratio like 12-4-8 when the palm is young each time you apply the granular fertilizer. The foliar spray will actually be absorbed quicker than the granular slow release fertilizer, but won't last as long. Also, be sure to water newly planted palms every other day for the first couple of weeks, then twice a week with a good deep watering each week thereafter when it's not raining. Good luck.

John
evan28
Original Author
12 years ago
@coconut_palm thanks for the great information! I moved the coconut back in Aug and don't really remember whether or not I grabbed the trunk or not but I do know that the ends of some of the larger root shoots were cut off at roughly 3 ft long. I did not know that snipping the roots on a coconut palm was such an issue, and hopefully I didn't cause any damage. Well it has been "alive" for five months since relocating it but has lost 2 fronds since. The picture posted is from yesterday so it still looks relatively healthy. I guess we'll see! Thanks again guys!