Palm plant roots out of pot

[jeffrey]

I have a Jade Empress palm tree. I got it a few years ago while on vacation in South Florida. It was small and bare rooted and I planted it in a pot. It has been growing fine for the last 2 years. I put it outside in the Spring and back into a heated and bright sunroom for the Winter.  The problem with the palm is that the supporting roots that come from the base of the plant are out of the soil and the plant is wobbly. I tried to fill the pot to the brim with soil but the roots are still to high. I tried to wire the base of the plant to small stakes to help support it but it is still wobbly and I am afraid that if its outside and we get our normal strong thunder storms it will fall over. My question is can I repot and place the crown deeper into the pot so no roots are exposed and perhaps this will help stabilize the plant (it is about 2-3 ft high).  Thanks for any suggestions. 

[Neil C]

Beautiful and healthy Rhapis you have there. Yes you can repot into a bigger pot and plant the palm so the base and roots are covered. Not too deep though. Rhapis grow quite slowly so it may be some time until your palm becomes stable in it's pot.

Regards Neil

[jeffrey]

Neil, Thanks for the reply. Just to be sure, when you say "not too deep" can you give me an idea by looking at the third picture just how deep to plant. Thanks again, Jeff

[PalmatierMeg]

Pot it so the rounded bottom of the stem is even with the soil. Do not bury any part of the stem in soil or the plant may rot and die. Palm roots are produced from a basal plate at the bottom of the stem so planting the stem deeper into the soil will be detrimental. If palm is wobbly, you can find bamboo stakes at your local garden center. Stake the palm using zip ties to secure it. If you don't like the look of zip ties, you can buy hair clips at a dollar store for the same purpose.

[Phoenikakias]

1 hour ago, PalmatierMeg said:

Pot it so the rounded bottom of the stem is even with the soil. Do not bury any part of the stem in soil or the plant may rot and die. Palm roots are produced from a basal plate at the bottom of the stem so planting the stem deeper into the soil will be detrimental. If palm is wobbly, you can find bamboo stakes at your local garden center. Stake the palm using zip ties to secure it. If you don't like the look of zip ties, you can buy hair clips at a dollar store for the same purpose.

How come then, that several palm spp, when left where  the seed has originally germinated, bury the bulb up to 10 cm below soil? And I do not confine this to desert palms, it happens also to Phoenix, Livistona and Sabal spp., to name few common and well known genera. 

Edited April 26, 2018 by Phoenikakias

[PalmatierMeg]

I'm not sure I understand your question. Some palms will pull themselves deeper into ground, i.e., heeled palms like Sabals. That may be the palm's nature. But human intervention is another matter. I cautioned this poster not to bury part of the palm's stem in the mistaken belief the buried stem will grow more roots or to "stabilize" it. I remember someone posting on PT years ago that he had brought in fill dirt and buried the trunks of his royal palms 1m deep. Weeks later he wondered why his trunking royals were dying.

[Phoenikakias]

That some burying of root initiation zone can enhance root production and help to stabilization is not entirely wrong, as natural examples show. But such practice should have of course its limits, as all things in life. What are those precise limits in every individual case depends a lot on the used soil, available moisture and other factors. I have only reported my own experience with germinated seeds from the mentioned spp. 

[Neil C]

Could you please take a photo of the one of leaves of your palm. The "bulb" at the base and the look of some of the leaves are giving off a Coccothrinax vibe rather than a Rhapis look. I could be completely wrong of course.

Regards Neil

[jeffrey]

Thanks for all the great information. Attached are pictures of my newly potted palm and as you can see I barely covered the crown. I inserted a tall bamboo stake into the pot close to the plant and used a thin wire around the palm to attach it to the stake. We are still having some chilly nights but as soon as temps bottom out around 50 it will stay outside for the season. Neil - I also tried to get some pics of the leaves in case you think it is another species of palm. Regards, Jeff