How do my palms look?

[NickJames]

How do things look?

Should I fertilize my cabbage palms even though they grow here natively?

 

Zone 9B, Daytona Beach FL

[DAVEinMB]

That Sylvester makes me jealous

[kinzyjr]

@NickJames You have a nice piece of ground there.  Overall, everything looks like it is shaping up well.  I'd recommend getting on a feeding schedule with a controlled-release fertilizer like Florikan, particularly with the Phoenix sp. and the Foxtail.  It's easier to get and stay ahead of a nutrient deficiency than to correct it once it develops.  No harm in sharing the love with the other palms either. 

[NickJames]

12 hours ago, DAVEinMB said:

That Sylvester makes me jealous

I’m so afraid it’ll die. The Sylvesters installed at my neighborhood entrance and throughout the common areas appear to be not doing so hot. Several have died completely. They are substantially larger though. I’ll have to take some photos. I know that the Phoenix palm decline disease is going around. Everyone thinks I’m nuts when I clean all my landscape tools with alcohol

[NickJames]

11 hours ago, kinzyjr said:

@NickJames You have a nice piece of ground there.  Overall, everything looks like it is shaping up well.  I'd recommend getting on a feeding schedule with a controlled-release fertilizer like Florikan, particularly with the Phoenix sp. and the Foxtail.  It's easier to get and stay ahead of a nutrient deficiency than to correct it once it develops.  No harm in sharing the love with the other palms either. 

Thank you! All of the queen palms planted as part of the standard landscaping package on some homes (I chose the package with the Sylvester since queen palms here are dirt cheap) are doing horribly. I think manganese deficiency. I approached one homeowner and asked if he would let me put some down. Sure enough, it turned a nice rich green (it had been yellow and brown). 

 

I’m basically the only one who does my own landscaping and my own lawn. I’m also the only one who has healthy looking specimens apparently!

[DAVEinMB]

1 hour ago, NickJames said:

I’m so afraid it’ll die. The Sylvesters installed at my neighborhood entrance and throughout the common areas appear to be not doing so hot. Several have died completely. They are substantially larger though. I’ll have to take some photos. I know that the Phoenix palm decline disease is going around. Everyone thinks I’m nuts when I clean all my landscape tools with alcohol

Hopefully it won't contract it. I don't know much about that disease but someone with some experience may be able to share prevention and treatment advice. Doing your own pruning and properly cleaning your tools I'd imagine is a good start. All my shears get cleaned with bleach in between uses. 

[NickJames]

19 minutes ago, DAVEinMB said:

Hopefully it won't contract it. I don't know much about that disease but someone with some experience may be able to share prevention and treatment advice. Doing your own pruning and properly cleaning your tools I'd imagine is a good start. All my shears get cleaned with bleach in between uses. 

I use 90% isopropyl alcohol which I imagine does the trick like bleach does. Fingers crossed!?

[DAVEinMB]

1 hour ago, NickJames said:

I use 90% isopropyl alcohol which I imagine does the trick like bleach does. Fingers crossed!?

That should be good. Alcohol is a solid disinfectant. 

[Merlyn]

Queens (and Washingtonia/Mexican Fan) are also really susceptible to Fusarium.  I just had to cut down and remove a Queen on Saturday that was fine a few weeks ago.  Suddenly 8 nice fronds were one-sided-dead with a reddish-brown color.  My wife spotted it while I was working on the agave bed and asked, "why is half of that frond dead?"  Grrrrr....  I hadn't trimmed a frond off of that palm in at least 3 months, maybe 4 months.  So mine caught it from some airborne or soilborne fungus.

Texas Phoenix Palm Decline (now called Lethal Bronzing) has made it to Orlando, but I'm not sure if it's made it to Daytona area yet.  I've documented 8 or 9 Sylvester deaths that look like they were from TPPD/LB, but without a lab test it's only a "best guess" as to what killed them.  The symptoms look right, with early browning of older fronds (and a red/brown tinge to them) and spear death while the rest of the upper crown looks okay.  

The Bizzie looks great, though maybe a bit close to the driveway.  You'll probably have to trim off fronds that go over the driveway, they'll get a full crown about 20' in diameter!  If it's a recent planting from a pot you might consider moving it 6' further from the driveway before it has a chance to root in place.  They are very sensitive to root disturbance, so if you decide to move it be really careful to not break roots or damage the rootball.

[NickJames]

I re-mulched my foxtail yesterday and planted some croton mamie around it to fill it in a bit more. 
 

I am quite obsessed with this palm probably because I’ve never lived in a zone this warm before. I think I favor this one over the others. She has a bubbler of her own for irrigation. It’s reclaimed water. The spot contained a live oak that I took out on day one after the house was completed. Don’t tell the City of Daytona Beach he he. They force the builders to put live oaks either right against sidewalks/driveways or against house foundations....

[NickJames]

4 hours ago, Merlyn2220 said:

Queens (and Washingtonia/Mexican Fan) are also really susceptible to Fusarium.  I just had to cut down and remove a Queen on Saturday that was fine a few weeks ago.  Suddenly 8 nice fronds were one-sided-dead with a reddish-brown color.  My wife spotted it while I was working on the agave bed and asked, "why is half of that frond dead?"  Grrrrr....  I hadn't trimmed a frond off of that palm in at least 3 months, maybe 4 months.  So mine caught it from some airborne or soilborne fungus.

Texas Phoenix Palm Decline (now called Lethal Bronzing) has made it to Orlando, but I'm not sure if it's made it to Daytona area yet.  I've documented 8 or 9 Sylvester deaths that look like they were from TPPD/LB, but without a lab test it's only a "best guess" as to what killed them.  The symptoms look right, with early browning of older fronds (and a red/brown tinge to them) and spear death while the rest of the upper crown looks okay.  

The Bizzie looks great, though maybe a bit close to the driveway.  You'll probably have to trim off fronds that go over the driveway, they'll get a full crown about 20' in diameter!  If it's a recent planting from a pot you might consider moving it 6' further from the driveway before it has a chance to root in place.  They are very sensitive to root disturbance, so if you decide to move it be really careful to not break roots or damage the rootball.

Interesting. I’m just surprised they keep putting these towering sylvesters in the same spot they keep dying. Clearly there is something wrong with the soil or something. I still need to take photos to show you guys. 
 

I guess I should’ve put the Bismarck in the middle of the yard!? It’s too late now. I moved in on July 31, 2019 as soon as the home got a certificate of occupancy and went to Lowe’s that night and bought the Bismarck and foxtail. I planted it that night. There is an irrigation drip line wrapped in there so either the irrigation or the rootball would get damaged. I’ll have to figure out the driveway situation when it comes to that. I park on the other side of the driveway. I guess we will see what happens!?

[Merlyn]

1 hour ago, NickJames said:

Interesting. I’m just surprised they keep putting these towering sylvesters in the same spot they keep dying. Clearly there is something wrong with the soil or something. I still need to take photos to show you guys. 
 

I guess I should’ve put the Bismarck in the middle of the yard!? It’s too late now. I moved in on July 31, 2019 as soon as the home got a certificate of occupancy and went to Lowe’s that night and bought the Bismarck and foxtail. I planted it that night. There is an irrigation drip line wrapped in there so either the irrigation or the rootball would get damaged. I’ll have to figure out the driveway situation when it comes to that. I park on the other side of the driveway. I guess we will see what happens!?

I should have phrased that better.  There's a dealership near me that used to have 8 nice Sylvesters, all of them are now dead over a space of about 1-1.5 years.  They declined with typical LB symptoms one after another, with no visible signs of anything else like Fusarium, Ganoderma or Thielaviopsis.  Another one across I4 died the same way, they just cut it down about a month ago.  Here's the thread where I was posting photos.

https://www.palmtalk.org/forum/index.php?/topic/59603-rapid-phoenix-sylvestris-death-in-sanford-fl-tppd-or-something-else/&page=2&tab=comments#comment-915615

Regarding the Bismarck, it might be okay if you are willing to trim up the side next to the .  The fronds aren't razor sharp or stabby like some palms, so it's really only an issue if the big fans get in the way.  It's certainly far enough away to not be a problem for the trunk diameter.  Bizzies get big at ground level but taper fairly fast.

Live oaks aren't nearly as bad as water oaks, but I wouldn't put one within 20 feet of a foundation or driveway.  I wouldn't put one within 70-80 feet of a house.

[NickJames]

16 minutes ago, Merlyn2220 said:

I should have phrased that better.  There's a dealership near me that used to have 8 nice Sylvesters, all of them are now dead over a space of about 1-1.5 years.  They declined with typical LB symptoms one after another, with no visible signs of anything else like Fusarium, Ganoderma or Thielaviopsis.  Another one across I4 died the same way, they just cut it down about a month ago.  Here's the thread where I was posting photos.

https://www.palmtalk.org/forum/index.php?/topic/59603-rapid-phoenix-sylvestris-death-in-sanford-fl-tppd-or-something-else/&page=2&tab=comments#comment-915615

Regarding the Bismarck, it might be okay if you are willing to trim up the side next to the .  The fronds aren't razor sharp or stabby like some palms, so it's really only an issue if the big fans get in the way.  It's certainly far enough away to not be a problem for the trunk diameter.  Bizzies get big at ground level but taper fairly fast.

Live oaks aren't nearly as bad as water oaks, but I wouldn't put one within 20 feet of a foundation or driveway.  I wouldn't put one within 70-80 feet of a house.

I watched that tree die. I may be able to get some details. I’ll PM you.