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ground cover or Shrub under Royal Palm


lpandroc

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Hi all...I have been trying to revive my 16ft Royal from a state of blahhh for a while (see other posts)...well..after every fertilizer session..i seem to burn the shrubbery under my Royal..I was using the neat looking Loropetalum ..it was burning bad..so I moved it and now I have none...

I may use pine straw until I look for something else to hide the dirt surrounding the Royal...any ideas as to a hardy ground cover for the palm that will withstand burning or fertilizer fo that matter..I moved the Loropetalum by the way

suggestions?...Im in Palm Harbor, FL

Jasmine?..perhaps?..maybe something with a litttle height..Its Pine straw till i find something I guess..thanks all!!!

Lance

Palm Harbor, FL

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Forgive my ignorance, but is it possible that the fact your ground cover is being burned a hint that you may be overdoing it a bit?

I'm not familiar with Florida soils, but often a living legume mulch can make a huge difference to plants, if you can handle the slightly 'jungle' look they create. Even vigourous viners like Lablab can provide a huge amount of free N fertiliser as well as recycling soil minerals, and also provide the organic matter essential to healthy soil. The amount of fert. you are using is going to cause you serious problems in the future, as you must be killing off all your soil mirco-organisms.

Waimarama New Zealand (39.5S, 177E)

Oceanic temperate

summer 25C/15C

winter 15C/6C

No frost, no heat

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well..I have heard that the soils in florida do not hold nutrients well...sandy soil just lets the importants stuff leech thru...honestly..I have a deficiency and the plants underneath come second when you have a 500 dollar tree you are trying to bring back from the blahhhs...its a thick trunk so ..?..im not sure

Lance

Palm Harbor, FL

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Lance-

I also think that your Royal has been burned from too much fertilizer.

As mentioned before, I believe I have done the same with one of mine.  These palms are heavy feeders, but even they have limits.  

I have skipped fertilizing my troubled Royal for about 4-5 months now and am waiting to see what happens.  A new frond is opening now, so in the next week or two Ill know if the palm is growing out of the "funk" or not.  If this next frond also browns out quickly, Ill probably replace the palm rather than continue to wait it out (as the companion Royal next to it is already getting far larger and the "balance" is getting thrown off).

Larry 

Palm Harbor, FL 10a / Ft Myers, FL 10b

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Remember that fertilization is just a game of salinity.  Fertilizers are salts.  They dilute out in the water in the soil.  Let's say there's 50 gallons of water in the soil around your roots.  You can see that the more fertilizer you give, the stronger the salt concentration.  So, if you push it, you're playing with the devil.  You can overcome this by:

1.  Using a slow release fertilizer

2.  Always, always water heavily before fertilizing.

Slow release fert. costs more and I think it's an example of "you're getting what you pay for".  Specifically regarding the sandy soils (and heavy rains) in FL, a slow release is ideal.  Any heavy application of regular fertilizer filters out of the soil quickly.  Heavy "blasts" are not the way to go.  The "guru's" in Florida really like Nutricote.

Phil

Jungle Music Palms and Cycads, established 1977 and located in Encinitas, CA, 20 miles north of San Diego on the Coast.  Phone:  619 2914605 Link to Phil's Email phil.bergman@junglemusic.net Website: www.junglemusic.net Link to Jungle Music Palms and Cycads

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(Phil @ Mar. 27 2007,08:53)

QUOTE
Slow release fert. costs more and I think it's an example of "you're getting what you pay for".  Specifically regarding the sandy soils (and heavy rains) in FL, a slow release is ideal.  Any heavy application of regular fertilizer filters out of the soil quickly.  Heavy "blasts" are not the way to go.  The "guru's" in Florida really like Nutricote.

No doubt.

I have been cheap (and also leery of the slow release merely washing away before its totally released especially since many of my planting beds are not 100% flat), so I have been going the route of using fast release (i.e. cheap) fertilizer, but applying it in smaller doses and more frequently, and as such mimicking the effects of timed release fertilizer, but at a lower cost.  My labor is free so it doesnt count :D

This method has worked great, with the probably exception of this one Royal that I am 90% sure I burned with too much fertilizer.  I tend to go heavy on the Royals and Queens and with the exception of this one, they have responded with very fast growth.

Larry 

Palm Harbor, FL 10a / Ft Myers, FL 10b

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Without wanting to state the obvious, don't apply fertiliser at above the recommended rate. As has been said, fertilisers are salts and if you apply them too heavily they interfere with the plants' ability to take up water and stunt them rather than speeding their growth. Smaller groundcover plants will be more sensitive but if you are burning them I don't think you'll be doing your palms any good either.

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