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My Palm Tree has died


jeff1958

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I Guess my palm tree has died.  This is the second season it has not grown any new fronds, it's bare, and now woodpeckers have made their homes in the upper portion of the trunk.  So im wondering, how long will a dead palm stand?  I hate ridding the woodpeckers of their new home, but i worry because the dead tree is close to my home and very tall.

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Do you know what kind of palm it is? What did it look like before it stopped growing?

Palms - 4 S. romanzoffiana, 1 W. bifurcata, 2 W. robusta, 1 R. rivularis, 1 B. odorata, 1 B. nobilis, 2 S. palmetto, 1 A. merillii, 1 P. canariensis, 1 BxJ, 1 BxJxBxS, 1 BxS, 3 P. roebelenii, 1 H. lagenicaulis, 1 H. verschaffeltii, 9 T. fortunei, 1 C. humilis, 2 C. macrocarpa, 1 L. chinensis, 1 R. excelsa

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I was told it was a coconut palm. i planted it in my yard when it was a baby, and its been there for at least 30 years now.   It was a beautifully tall straight tree, 50 -60 ft tall.  and spring before last it did not sprout any new fronds.  They always died in winter and came back in spring

 

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@jeff1958 I can confirm it wasn't a coconut palm.  They typically only last a few years unprotected in inland Central Florida and have even died from cold in South Florida in really bad winters.  You'll want to have the tree removed.  As far as what type it is, we'd need a photo to be able to tell.  When you post, please put new topics of this nature in the General Discussion area. 

@PALM MOD can move it so that it will get the attention from the broader community.

Lakeland, FL

USDA Zone 1990: 9a  2012: 9b  2023: 10a | Sunset Zone: 26 | Record Low: 20F/-6.67C (Jan. 1985, Dec.1962) | Record Low USDA Zone: 9a

30-Year Avg. Low: 30F | 30-year Min: 24F

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....btw I am in Charleston SC, and unfortunately this is the only picture i could find of my palm and its just a portion of the lower trunk, don't know if this helps in the identification ?  Thanks

20190416_190207.jpg

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Yes at least the top, fronds, looked pretty much like that, but the skin on my trunk is smoother ?

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21 hours ago, jeff1958 said:

Yes at least the top, fronds, looked pretty much like that, but the skin on my trunk is smoother ?

Oh hold on, I think it must be a sabal palmetto. Here's a picture.

Spalmetto2.jpeg

Edited by Teegurr
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this may sound crazy, this trunk looks more like mine, but the fronds that were on mine look more like the other one ?  i'm  finding im so ignorant about the subject lol

 

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On 11/28/2020 at 11:55 AM, jeff1958 said:

this may sound crazy, this trunk looks more like mine, but the fronds that were on mine look more like the other one ?  i'm  finding im so ignorant about the subject lol

 

Yeah, if the fronds look like the first one, it probably is, which is some kind of Washingtonia.  Either filifera or robusta, or a hybrid, filibusta.

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Probably a washingtonia since a coconut palm would almost certainly not survive in an 8b climate zone but Im sorry to hear about the loss.

A 30+ year old palm loss would depress me for a while.

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...thanks guys, well i guess i'll just have to rid the woodpeckers of their new homes and cut 'er down ...thanks again !

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  • 2 weeks later...

Washingtonia Robusta. Sorry about your loss...

Hesperia,Southern CA (High Desert area). Zone 8b

Elevation; about 3600 ft.

Lowest temp. I can expect each year 19/20*f lowest since I've been growing palms *13(2007) Hottest temp. Each year *106

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17 hours ago, jeff1958 said:

I ran across this picture of my Palm while viewing an old google map

It would be a good choice to cut it down soon.  There's no way to know what killed it, but it's possible that it was something like Thielaviopsis.  In your trunk photo there's a spot that looks like it was "bleeding."  That brown spot with a trailing line going downwards is typical of a Thielaviopsis infection, which rots the trunk on the inside.  The palm looks pretty much ok on the outside, then the fronds die off one by one.  Since the trunk is rotting on the inside, it can just randomly collapse like this with no warning:

Thielaviopsis_Queen.JPG

Whoever removes the trunk should be careful of random collapse.  If you plan on planting any other palms in the future, don't do it in the same spot.  Whatever fungus or disease that killed that one may linger in the soil in that spot for years.  It's also a good idea to not grind the stump and spread the mulch, that would just spread out the fungus everywhere.  I think the two best options are either extracting the stump (maybe expensive) or just cutting it slightly below ground level and burying it.  Anyone else, please chime in if you have a better suggestion!

Oh, and welcome to PalmTalk!  It's a shame that your first experience is figuring out how to remove a dead 30+ year old palm, hopefully that doesn't put you off on the species!  The "Cold Hardy Palms" forum section has a ton of great info on growing palms in SC and other spots that get regular freezes.

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I’m not sure about Washingtonias but palms do not typically fall like trees after they die. You could probably leave it there for a while without concern.

Edit - Maybe you should remove it after seeing that picture. Wow! I have not seen one fall like that before.

Edited by Johnny Palmseed
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I actually view this is as a tremendous opportunity for you to plant something new.

You’ve come to the right place for help with a selection!!

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