Choosing a tree In general, the factors that should be considered are: Do you want to shade an area? Do you want to block a view? Trying to create a look? What will be the size of the tree at maturity? Temperature? Most types of palm trees will not tolerate freezing weather. Sunlight? Not all varieties of palm trees are equally sun tolerant. Water? Palm trees have been associated with desert conditions in the wild, however, they are only found near abundant and continuous supplies of water. Planting a Tree Dig the hole at lease 50% wider and 50% deeper than the tree's container. Test drainage factor by pouring a few gallons of water into the hole. If you can see the water drain into the ground, everything is good. If the water just sits there, please dig the hole a little deeper. Fill the bottom of the hole with sand. After removing the plastic container, fluff out the roots so that when you place the tree in the hole, most of the roots are pointed outward when, back fill the hole with sand, form a barrier around the circumference of the tree to help hold in the water. Ferterlized. Note: To encurage maximum growth of your tree, it is recommended that you leave the earth exposed around the tree. That is, do not cover the area around the tree trunk with sod, bark, rocks or some other kind of ground cover. Soil A good general planting mix would have two parts organic material and three parts sand, with some slow-release fertilizer. This will help the water drain more quickly and prevent root rot. Most trees are not fussy about pH value, Yellowing in the leaves may be a sign of a lack of iron or potassium. Ferterilze regularly. Watering Keep the soil moist, not dry, not wet. Cycads do not need as much watering as other types of trees, maybe three times a week. Others trees need more water. Newly planted palm trees need to be well watered. Mature and established palms will tolerate drought, but will grow faster with regular watering. Frost Protection Cold weather slows down the growth of palms, reduces the activity of the roots, and often weakens the plam to the point where a disease can become active and kill the palm. Severe cold damage from the frost or freezing temperatures destroy plam tissues and may severely reduce water conduction in the trunk for years. As warmer weather returns, primary or secondary palm pathogens often attack weakened palm through damaged tissue. Spraying the bud of your trees with fungicidal copper before freezing weather, to reduce these bacteria populations to the lowest level. This should avoid primary and secondary plant pathogens. Generally, the younger a palm, no matter how hardy it is as a mature specimen, the greater protection it will need. As a rule, do not plant a palm tree outside unless its roots can fill a 6" container and has reached at least one foot in height. Keep trees from freezing by countuinlly spraying water. Continuing running water should not freeze. Prevention is the best policy. To get your palms ready for winter. Keep them well ferterlized and certianly a heavy dose of ferterlizer is good in the late Fall, just before the cold season. Spraying the bud of the tree with fungicidal copper is a good preventative action. Fertilizing Start fertilizing in the Spring until the start of the cold season. We carry a special blend of fertilizer just for palms trees. For smaller trees, use granule fertilizer about every six weeks. For large trees, Lutz fertilizer spikes twice a year are the way to go. Pruning Dead Fronds Dead fronds can be removed, so long as there is no green in them. If you are pruning several palms, sterilize the pruner between trees so you do not spread any (STD's) diseases. (just kidding) Magnesium-deficient palms where the fronds have yellowed can be removed so long as there is no green in them. Removing them when there is green on them can cause the magnesium deficiency to move up to the healthy fronds. Maintaining Healthy Palms For maintaining and enhancing the beauty of healthy palms, we recommend that you water daily and ferterlize regularly. Trim dead and brown branches in late spring early summer. Party frequently with loud music. Palms prefer live rock and roll bands. Symptoms & Treatments Brown spots Palms look healty except for small 1/4" to 1/2" brown spots: Avoid overhead watering, keep fronds dry, remove infected tissue. Cold Injury Spraying copper hydroxide-based fungicide into the bud of the tree will help, Unfortunitly it requires a chemical permit to aquire the proper fungicide, so, Lutz manganese ferterlizer spikes, (available at Pacific Palms) TLC, and a little time should work (kind of like recovering from a tequila hang-over). Do not trim any damaged/dead parts. Wait until there is significant new growth before cutting off the old leaves. The dead stuff protects new growth. Root Rot Yellowing or loss of older leaves, a soft trunk and roots are signs of root rot. Root rot is caused by too munch water as a result of heavy soils or poor drainage. Let the tree go dry between waterings. To prevent root rot, follow planting instructions, above. Yellow, Orange, or Brown Flecks Older leaves with wide bands of yellow, orange, bronze, or brown with withering, frizzling leaves. The tree is mostly in need of some potassium, but some magnesium should be used together. Lutz potassium ferterlizer spikes are available. Complete recovery can take a year or longer. Tips Turning Brown This can occur for several reasons. Salt can be the problem if close to the ocean and high winds occur. If the tree is not getting enough water during the hot summer and high winds or just dry, high winds will do it. Extended soil saturation can also cause brown tips. Brown tips are not serious and can disappear over time with increased watering and using Lutz maintenance ferterlizer spikes twice a year. Frizzy Top or Leaves Treat as soon as posible when problem is observed! This is a sign of Manganese deficiency and can be fatal to the palm. Lutz manganese ferterlizer spikes are required here. Results may take one to three months. Broad Yellow Band on Leaves Mostly date palms that show a wide broad yellow bands along the edge of the older leafs while the center stays green, is a sign of a lack of magnesium. Magnesium deficiency can affect most species of palms, date palms are particularly susceptible. Treatments with Lutz magnesium ferterlizer spikes can take up to several months depending on the severity of the deficiency. Once your palm has responded to treatment we recommend maintaining them with Lutz palm tree maintenance spikes three times a year. |
Pacific Palms |
Choosing a tree In general, the factors that should be considered are: Do you want to shade an area? Do you want to block a view? Trying to create a look? What will be the size of the tree at maturity? Temperature? Most types of palm trees will not tolerate freezing weather. Sunlight? Not all varieties of palm trees are equally sun tolerant. Water? Palm trees have been associated with desert conditions in the wild, however, they are only found near abundant and continuous supplies of water. Planting a Tree Dig the hole at lease 50% wider and 50% deeper than the tree's container. Test drainage factor by pouring a few gallons of water into the hole. If you can see the water drain into the ground, everything is good. If the water just sits there, please dig the hole a little deeper. Fill the bottom of the hole with sand. After removing the plastic container, fluff out the roots so that when you place the tree in the hole, most of the roots are pointed outward when, back fill the hole with sand, form a barrier around the circumference of the tree to help hold in the water. Ferterlized. Note: To encurage maximum growth of your tree, it is recommended that you leave the earth exposed around the tree. That is, do not cover the area around the tree trunk with sod, bark, rocks or some other kind of ground cover. Soil A good general planting mix would have two parts organic material and three parts sand, with some slow-release fertilizer. This will help the water drain more quickly and prevent root rot. Most trees are not fussy about pH value, Yellowing in the leaves may be a sign of a lack of iron or potassium. Ferterilze regularly. Watering Keep the soil moist, not dry, not wet. Cycads do not need as much watering as other types of trees, maybe three times a week. Others trees need more water. Newly planted palm trees need to be well watered. Mature and established palms will tolerate drought, but will grow faster with regular watering. Frost Protection Cold weather slows down the growth of palms, reduces the activity of the roots, and often weakens the plam to the point where a disease can become active and kill the palm. Severe cold damage from the frost or freezing temperatures destroy plam tissues and may severely reduce water conduction in the trunk for years. As warmer weather returns, primary or secondary palm pathogens often attack weakened palm through damaged tissue. Spraying the bud of your trees with fungicidal copper before freezing weather, to reduce these bacteria populations to the lowest level. This should avoid primary and secondary plant pathogens. Generally, the younger a palm, no matter how hardy it is as a mature specimen, the greater protection it will need. As a rule, do not plant a palm tree outside unless its roots can fill a 6" container and has reached at least one foot in height. Keep trees from freezing by countuinlly spraying water. Continuing running water should not freeze. Prevention is the best policy. To get your palms ready for winter. Keep them well ferterlized and certianly a heavy dose of ferterlizer is good in the late Fall, just before the cold season. Spraying the bud of the tree with fungicidal copper is a good preventative action. Fertilizing Start fertilizing in the Spring until the start of the cold season. We carry a special blend of fertilizer just for palms trees. For smaller trees, use granule fertilizer about every six weeks. For large trees, Lutz fertilizer spikes twice a year are the way to go. Pruning Dead Fronds Dead fronds can be removed, so long as there is no green in them. If you are pruning several palms, sterilize the pruner between trees so you do not spread any (STD's) diseases. (just kidding) Magnesium-deficient palms where the fronds have yellowed can be removed so long as there is no green in them. Removing them when there is green on them can cause the magnesium deficiency to move up to the healthy fronds. Maintaining Healthy Palms For maintaining and enhancing the beauty of healthy palms, we recommend that you water daily and ferterlize regularly. Trim dead and brown branches in late spring early summer. Party frequently with loud music. Palms prefer live rock and roll bands. Symptoms & Treatments Brown spots Palms look healty except for small 1/4" to 1/2" brown spots: Avoid overhead watering, keep fronds dry, remove infected tissue. Cold Injury Spraying copper hydroxide-based fungicide into the bud of the tree will help, Unfortunitly it requires a chemical permit to aquire the proper fungicide, so, Lutz manganese ferterlizer spikes, (available at Pacific Palms) TLC, and a little time should work (kind of like recovering from a tequila hang-over). Do not trim any damaged/dead parts. Wait until there is significant new growth before cutting off the old leaves. The dead stuff protects new growth. Root Rot Yellowing or loss of older leaves, a soft trunk and roots are signs of root rot. Root rot is caused by too munch water as a result of heavy soils or poor drainage. Let the tree go dry between waterings. To prevent root rot, follow planting instructions, above. Yellow, Orange, or Brown Flecks Older leaves with wide bands of yellow, orange, bronze, or brown with withering, frizzling leaves. The tree is mostly in need of some potassium, but some magnesium should be used together. Lutz potassium ferterlizer spikes are available. Complete recovery can take a year or longer. Tips Turning Brown This can occur for several reasons. Salt can be the problem if close to the ocean and high winds occur. If the tree is not getting enough water during the hot summer and high winds or just dry, high winds will do it. Extended soil saturation can also cause brown tips. Brown tips are not serious and can disappear over time with increased watering and using Lutz maintenance ferterlizer spikes twice a year. Frizzy Top or Leaves Treat as soon as posible when problem is observed! This is a sign of Manganese deficiency and can be fatal to the palm. Lutz manganese ferterlizer spikes are required here. Results may take one to three months. Broad Yellow Band on Leaves Mostly date palms that show a wide broad yellow bands along the edge of the older leafs while the center stays green, is a sign of a lack of magnesium. Magnesium deficiency can affect most species of palms, date palms are particularly susceptible. Treatments with Lutz magnesium ferterlizer spikes can take up to several months depending on the severity of the deficiency. Once your palm has responded to treatment we recommend maintaining them with Lutz palm tree maintenance spikes three times a year. |
Care and Maintance |
