Bamboo Palm Help!!!

9 years ago

Hi!

My Bamboo Palm seems to be struggling a little bit. It's in a medium light area, has stones at bottom of planter so it doesn't sit in water, and has many healthy looking stalks that are still blooming.

I believe I hurt the plant when I fertilized it over the winter. There are two stalks that look very unhealthy & some other signs of damage.

I recently flushed the plant to remove any fertilizer or salt build up.

My local nursery recommended that I use some SuperThrive to rehab the roots, but I haven't put it on yet b/c I'm waiting for the next watering. The plant is plenty moist right now after the flush about a week ago.

Questions:

1) Can anyone confirm this is fertilizer burn?

2) Shoudl I remove the unhealthy looking stalks? Will they recover?

3) Should I repot the plant with new soil?

4) Anyone have experience with SuperThrive? Good or Bad

5) Any other general advice.

Featured Answer

tropicbreezent

9 years ago

It looks like your "unhealthy" stalks are dead. These palms are clumping types so the dead ones stalks will be replaced by new ones over time. Don't know why two of them would suddenly die while the others remain healthy looking. You noted on one photo that a stem was removed to check the roots but you don't mention how it looked. Looking at the pot you have the plant in I'm a bit puzzled where the stones you mentioned are placed. Are they inside the pot because I cant see a saucer of any type under the pot? Which raises another question, although you say you "recently flushed the plant" does the pot have drainage holes?

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Comments (6)

Bill Engel
9 years ago
Check to be sure you are not overwatering, a bamboo palm in low light uses very little water and if you water the soil thoroughly it will take a week or more to dry out. Get a soil probe so you can check how dry the soil is near the bottom of the pot before you water. I would recommend moving the plant to a brighter spot if you are able to. Spider mite is very common on bamboo palms and not always obvious, check the undersides of the leaves for tiny white and black specks, with webbing in the concave parts of the leaf, and spray with an insecticidal soap solution if you find any.

I agree with the previous poster that the "unhealthy" stalks are dead and should be cut out. The "brown leaf tips" on the healthy trunks are nothing to worry about they are just left over from dead fronds that have fallen off. Remember that palms never grow new fronds from the side of the trunk, only at the top.

Your problem is almost certainly some combination of too much water and too little light. Address these issues, (be sure there is a drainage hole in the planter) check for mites and your palm should make a comeback.
scojo18 thanked Bill Engel
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scojo18
Original Author
9 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
@tropicbreezent Thank You!

1) I attached a picture of the root I pulled out below.

2) The stones are in the bottom of the pot underneath the soil. There is a single drainage hole at the bottom of the pot and there is a saucer there too.

3) Any thoughts on the SuperThrive?
scojo18
Original Author
9 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
@Bill Thank You!

I think I was overwatering, then under-watering, and i think I have it down now. I will buy that probe to make sure. I'm waiting 1-2 weeks between waterings right now. I don't have any spider mites that I can see. Good to know about the "Brown Leaf Tips".

Regarding the "unhealthy" stalks that should be cut out. Do you have any reference material you would recommend on how to cut them out correctly? I do't want to harm the plant.

Also - any thoughts on the SuperThrive?
palmbob
9 years ago
Best not to mess with the roots and just cut the dead stalks off at ground level. Palms do NOT like their roots yanked on or messed with. This is a hard palm to overwater, but if you have poor soil drainage, it is possible. Sometimes you really have to really overwater it to leach out the salts building up in the soil (best to do outdoors). Underwatering is far more common with many of the indoor palms that overwatering. Overfertilizing is also far more common than under fertilizing... be very careful with fertilizers... can easily kill a palm with them.
scojo18 thanked palmbob
Mary Spencer
9 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago

Over fertilizing is a thing with palms? I just repotted a bamboo palm in miraclegrow potting soil and noticed it is not doing so great. Is the fertilizer the issue?