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Wild stolon on Lipstick palm indoors


David_Sweden

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I'm wondering if anyone has experience or suggestions on how to handle a stolon shooting out from my palm at increasing speed?

I got this Lipstick Palm 3½ years ago and have been growing it indoors since (pics are to scale):

1928308685_Growth3years.thumb.png.c05918053f00c1cb915abf32fef87f9c.png

During the autumn the stolon has been growing very slowly, this pic is from Aug 6th:

180806csrc.thumb.jpg.fb30a5ace56da4821c15733c78d22edf.jpg

I tricked it into travelling over the brim (this image is a GIF that should be moving, if it doesn't, you can check my older post):

StolonBridge.thumb.gif.71fe45176df2b8a0e934f60fb8d17e1c.gif

Growth was very slow but recently it's picked up and only the thin center part is growing I think. The following 2 pics are just 10 days apart (Jan 23rd and Feb 2nd):

190123cs.thumb.jpg.91bf6d03e1766c704f9b34921d25d20b.jpg

1172175452_190202(3)cs.thumb.jpg.f0c9b9cf81f454d1bc06036e15bd2bbc.jpg

What to do with it? If I let it grow into a separate pot can I then chop it off and get 2 palms? Or if not, can I just chop it off to stop it from reaching wherever it's aiming for (my balcony door it seems), is that safe? Or, if no safe way to chop it, maybe lead it into a round jar which it can circle forever? So far it hasn't expected soil or moisture I suppose but if in a jar maybe after a while it would give up and dry out? I don't have any use for it (unless I can get one more palm out of it), I just want to limit it in a safe way. Maybe you guys with palms in gardens of more invasive suckering type (I'm surprised a Lipstick can even get a stolon!) are used to keeping them from taking over the garden by chopping them or something? (Some older posts on this topic are here.)

 

181021 (3)cs.jpg

Edited by David_Sweden
GIF not moving
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Hi David, I hope you root that stolon in a second pot, and you separate the second palm after it becomes established, and you post pictures of the process here!

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Andrei W. Konradi, Burlingame, California.  Vicarious appreciator of palms in other people's gardens and in habitat

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This is normal. I want my Cyrtostachys to do that to form a hedge along a fence, but it is slow going. Good idea to set another pot next to it and let it root. Fantastic job of growing this palm indoors. Most find it a very challenging palm outside its usual climate.

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Kim Cyr

Between the beach and the bays, Point Loma, San Diego, California USA
and on a 300 year-old lava flow, Pahoa, Hawaii, 1/4 mile from the 2018 flow
All characters  in this work are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

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Thanks. I'll put a small pot next to it then! When green leaves come up from it, can I just cut the stolon then? Like a navel-cord? At the thin part or closer to the old stem? This sounds great, will get one more palm :D

I have a few rare palms which have been more or less challenging, but this one was always easy. Seems to be very happy with the pot size and soil. Has reached the ceiling now though, better find a new apartment?! :P

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No tricks. You can see some details if you follow the link at the end of my 1st post. It has always been in a mix with mostly peat. I learned from when I had a small seedling before (which I gave away) that you don't have to keep them in standing water as people often say, but can water them "normally" (meaning water when still slightly moist using a cheap moisture meter with 1 metal rod), but sure, better too soon than too late. It has two 70W CDM spot lights on it besides a SSW window (I find CDM spots to be the only way to get good light levels on all leaves and also nice looking apartment since it is put at the ceiling; aiming at >1klx on part of each leaf). Leaching 3 times per year as with most my plants. Just use common liquid fert ½ dose.

I have a humidifier to keep level at 40-50% RH and every morning boil water to reach 60% that slowly declines. Other so-called ways to increase humidity like misting or keeping water in a saucer under it etc are just fairytales - just buy a cheap digital RH meter, they are quite reliable (because they are all based on capacitive sensors which give you 2% accuracy for about €1). Reason for boiling is I have a theory stomata might not open up well if never high humidity but the details of stomata is not well investigated by scientists.

I think it must itself have created a fine mesh of roots that contribute to drainage because it drains remarkably well. Doesn't seem to need a bigger pot, no roots coming out, soil not dense, and needs watering every ~4-6 days (3-4 days in summer). It never lost a leaf except 3 very tiny old ones at the bottom level. I keep the balcony door closed if below 10 degC or so.

It had mealy bugs when it got here but I know how to exterminate them... It is not in perfect shape, some leaves are yellow and even brown in small areas, but no bugs, I guess that's its way to say it is not 100% happy. And all leaves younger that ~1½ years are totally green. Been thinking about dusting it but only tried a few leaves, dust doesn't seem to have any bad effects.

Edited by David_Sweden
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Great work, I have some seedlings, good outside now, will need to bring indoors for 4 months of the year in Sydney starting mid May till mid September, I'll need to buy some grow lights!

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Thanks. If small seedlings probably cheaper & easier to just use one CFL each. It is smart to get a cheap lux meter I think to skip the guesswork, aim at >1 klx at a significant part of each frond (since plants can't send energy between fronds just between leaves within a frond, so each has to photosynthesize) and these wouldn't mind much more, even >10 klx. However with a common 12-14W CFL I think conclusion usually is to have distance 1-3dm from lamp to leaves, since <1dm risks burnt leaves and >3dm gives insufficient light. And get any CFL, no need to get "grow light" and doesn't matter if cold or warm light, so just get warm since it looks nices for humans.

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