First time owning palms...one is sick

[lonewolf]

We purchased a house in NW Alabama in mid 2018 that has 4 palms.  This is our first time owning palms.  3 of them are doing great, but one is not doing well at all.  Starting mid summer last year, the fronds would start turning yellow, then brown and then dying off almost as soon as they came out.  The tree is doing the same thing this year.  I guess it really never stopped doing it.  I believe it is a windmill palm.  I am attaching some pictures that show what it looks like. 

It is still producing new fronds, but they start dying off right after they open up.  I am hoping someone here has an idea of what is going on with this one tree.  We have fertilized every few months and we haven't treated it any differently than the other trees so we are at a loss.  We treated them all with fungicide last year and couldn't tell that it did anything.  The last picture is of the mate to this tree and it is starting to look like it might be developing the same problem if you look at some of the fronds, but you can also tell how much better and fuller it is.

I can take more pictures or whatever is needed to help...I just don't know what that is.  We are not "yard people" but would like to keep these alive.

TIA for any advice.

 

 

[kinzyjr]

@lonewolf Welcome to PalmTalk!

The symptoms look like some kind of fungal infection in the crown.  This usually happens when you get a combination of cold with moisture of some kind in the crown (rain, snow, etc.)  Sometimes the symptoms don't show until the weather warms up.  One thing you can do as a diagnostic is pour some peroxide into the crown and see if it fizzes up.  If it does, there is an infection in the crown.  Just a word about the peroxide, don't put it in the crown when there is a chance of freezing weather.  If the peroxide fizzes up, you can move to treating the problem with copper fungicide so that you're not leaving water in the crown.  Others may share a different diagnosis or additional treatment options for you to consider.

[lonewolf]

Thanks for the feedback @kinzyjr.  I did try the hydrogen peroxide and could definitely hear it fizzing and saw a little on the base of one of the fronds foaming some.  I can upload a video if that helps any.  Just out of curiosity, I put some peroxide on the other 3 palms and they also fizzed.  I was told if they bloomed that they were a healthy tree.  I had 2 bloom last year and 3 bloom this year.  The only one that didn't was the sick looking one.  That may be all wrong, but was what I was told. 

I have attached a picture of the fungicide we used last year.  Is this the right stuff?  We mixed up a 20oz water bottle with the fungicide and poured it directly into the crown. 

Thanks again.

Edited May 20, 2020 by lonewolf

[kinzyjr]

1 hour ago, lonewolf said:

Thanks for the feedback @kinzyjr.  I did try the hydrogen peroxide and could definitely hear it fizzing and saw a little on the base of one of the fronds foaming some.  I can upload a video if that helps any.  Just out of curiosity, I put some peroxide on the other 3 palms and they also fizzed.  I was told if they bloomed that they were a healthy tree.  I had 2 bloom last year and 3 bloom this year.  The only one that didn't was the sick looking one.  That may be all wrong, but was what I was told. 

I have attached a picture of the fungicide we used last year.  Is this the right stuff?  We mixed up a 20oz water bottle with the fungicide and poured it directly into the crown. 

Thanks again.

Looks like the right stuff.  If your other palms are fine for now, I wouldn't worry about treating them.  I would stick with treating the one that is ailing.  You might be able to save it, might not, but won't know until you try it.  If the distressed palm starts putting out fronds with no necrotic brown spots/marks on it, you'll know that your palm is on the mend.

[lonewolf]

kinzyjr, Thanks.  The tree is generating new fronds, and they don't seem to turn brown until after they open up.  What is the best way to treat with the fungicide?  Mix it up and pour directly into the crown?  How much and often should I treat it.

 

Thanks again.

[kinzyjr]

@lonewolf Yes, mix and pour directly in the crown.  You'll probably only need a cup full.  When I've used it, I used it once and that was either enough to kill the fungus or the palm was too far gone to save.  If you use it and the next frond stays healthy, you're probably in decent shape.  If not, you can attempt treating it again, but that might also mean I was incorrect about what was wrong with it.

I use this product and gently move the spear around and spray down into the crown.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Bonide-32-oz-Liquid-Copper-Fungicide-Ready-To-Use-775/203564335

[lonewolf]

One other thing, my wife was afraid that she over-fertilized.  Would that cause this issue?  I didn't think so, but she was concerned.

[kinzyjr]

9 hours ago, lonewolf said:

One other thing, my wife was afraid that she over-fertilized.  Would that cause this issue?  I didn't think so, but she was concerned.

If the others got the same amount of fertilizer I would lean away from that.  In my case, I don't use a lot of fertilizer, so I'd have to leave that one to someone with more knowledge of fertilizer burn.  If you're concerned about it, you can brush any visible fertilizer away from the palm and continue watering regularly to leach it out of the soil over time. 

[Allen]

13 hours ago, lonewolf said:

One other thing, my wife was afraid that she over-fertilized.  Would that cause this issue?  I didn't think so, but she was concerned.

You definitely should not fertilize this palm any more and remove any existing if you recently put some out.  What type of lights are on it in the picture and what did you do to protect it if anything?  Wrong protection method can damage palms.   Are roots protected from cold with mulch in winter?  Check soil around palm for being too dry and dig a bit down and check soil moisture and root health (white roots).  About 6 inches down 12 inches from trunk gently.  

[lonewolf]

We have removed all the mulch around it along with any fertilizer that might have been left.  We put some Christmas lights around them over the winter for effect and to help keep them a little warmer over the winter,  It doesn't get terribly cold here.  Always gets above freezing the next day if it does freeze.  I think we had a few flakes of snow this year, but nothing stuck.  We don't really do anything to them over winter as the local nursery said they would be fine down to 0.  It never made it below 15 if I remember.  We have since removed the lights now that it is spring and this all really started last summer.  We have had a lot of rain this year so dry ground is not really an issue.  We did dig a little hole as someone said to fill it with water and check for drainage and the water does drain away pretty quickly so i don't think the soil is too compacted or anything.  We did put mulch around the tree sometime last year, but it wasn't right before winter or anything.

We may have over pruned it last year.  We had some bad info on what leaves to remove so we may have removed some that should have stayed.  That is the only other thing I can think of that might have affected it.  Don't know if it can recover from that or not, but like I said, it is still producing leaves.  You can see that in this photo. 

 

 

Thanks again for the feedback.

 

[Allen]

yea I don't know what to tell you.  Your protection from what you say didn't harm it.  Pruning, only cut completely black/brown fronds off.  Also they won't take down to 0F.    They will be damaged below 10-12F and will most likely die somewhere lower than that depending on exact weather.   I would just make sure the soil around it stays moist this summer and see if it recovers.  These palms can take water fine so I'd put some mulch down to help with that over the summer.   There is likely some root issue going on or watering issue.  Mine are in clay and like ample water.