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Robusta leaves drying up.......need help!

19 years ago

We used to have five Robusta seedlings that were very healthy, but they suddenly started dying off. Now I only have one left and I don't wan't to lose this one. It starts off when the bottom leaves start to turn yellowish/gray, and this later spreads to the newer leaves and spear. The whole palm is eventually dried up and the leaves are a grayish silver color. Any help is appreciated.

Comments (15)

  • 19 years ago

    It sounds to me like they are being overwatered. Does the soil drain well or has it been kept too wet?

  • 19 years ago

    jrod:

    I actually keep the soil very dry, and it is very well draining. There are some roots sticking out of the drainage holes, but I don't know if thats a problem. Here's a picture of our palm. It isn't real clear, but the leaf on the left is turning yellow.

    Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:1182838}}

  • 19 years ago

    Were all five in the same pot?

  • 19 years ago

    Soil looks to wet pull on the fronds and hope they don't come out....

  • 19 years ago

    dbrya1:

    The palms are in a separate pot each. There used to be two in one pot, another two in a different pot, and one in one pot, but I separated them in the summer. They recovered nicely, but this started happening about a month ago.

    topher2006:

    I just checked the fronds and they are all intact. The base of the palm is still very hard so I think I can still keep this palm alive. Also, the reason the soil looks wet is because I watered it before taking the picture.

  • 19 years ago

    Ok, Well if the soil is free draining and not too wet, the next thing i wonder is...

    1) Is it getting enough sunlight?
    2) Have you checked for air-pockets in the soil?

  • 19 years ago

    Or too close to the window,and getting sunbunrt.
    What kind of potting soil are you using?

  • 19 years ago

    Could be the usual drying up from being brought up from inside and instead of having the usual humid outside air, it has the dry air put out by your furnace.
    Try misting it with a spray bottle but not too much cause you can get spear pull. Mist it with a fan blowing on it too.

  • 19 years ago

    Did this palm move inside for the winter ?
    If so make sure it is not close to vent or
    blower blowing dry air..

  • 19 years ago

    looks like desication to me.... either wind if outdoors or heat if indoors, id say that dessication costs my palms more growth than any other thing including cold!!

  • 19 years ago

    Exactly what kind of setup did you have them in. If you have them (or it now) next to a window and in a constant mid-upper 60s they should thrive. I water mine 2-3 times a week and it keeps pushing up steady growth. Could you have it too dry or too cool?

  • 19 years ago

    I think one of the biggest killers of palms (or any plant) is the act of rushing your palms inside the day of a big chill event. There needs to be an acclimation process to bringing plants inside. I have a covered patio, so for me it is a process of storing my palms under the canopy (out of the sun) for a short period of 4-7 days, getting them used to lower light levels. I then put them in the garage for a few days before I start to bring them inside. I have a basement room set up with flourescent light fixtures and grow lights. I set up a warm air humidifier and run it a few times a week. If I put a plant inside I make sure to mist it at least every 1-2 days. It does not take a lot of time, just a routine thing. Do not overmist your plants.

    I suspect your palm is suffering the shock effects of being brought inside, put in front of a window and suffering the drying effects of the sun coming through the glass, low humidity and no air movement.

    I'd certainly move that palm away from the window and mist it (don't over do it) and keep it in a bright area, just no direct sun for a while. put a bowl of water next to the plant to create humidity and hope for the best.

  • 19 years ago

    This palm is near the window in the picture, but it doesn't get direct light. Our house is usually at 65 degrees during the winter and it's a couple feet away from a vent. I try to mist it everyday, and we sometimes leave a fan on by it. I don't really think it's shock, because after I brought it in it was still growing for over a month. There's a triangle palm nearby that is also browning, so we may need to move all of our palms to another place. The problem is literally every window in our house has a vent by it, and area in the picture is the sunniest part of our house. Any suggestions?

  • 19 years ago

    A couple things. If you have a heat vent by the palm add a diverter over the heat vent. That will allow the flow of heat to spread out. Another thing I would add is a small fan on low in the direction of the heat vent. Air movement in a dry house is a plus. It also looks like the pot is a little big. Possibly the roots take up a very small area in the pot. Overwatering once and your plant is doomed. I try to water only in the morning and only if its going to be sunny. good luck,,,Bill

  • 19 years ago

    Billn
    I have sure learned my lesson from overwatering !
    I was always told in the summertime palms can't get enough water. "Boy is that a lie " I have found that out when my windmill and robusta's fronds pulled out, also lost a bismarck in a pot. also a purple king palm...
    No more over watering for me i have purchased a moisture meter There are very delicate species out there that i want to try ,so i will know how much to water from now on !

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