How wet should I keep my Ceroxylon?

[Ruben D 6]

I purchased a ceroxylon alpinum a couple of months ago after a long search. I've noticed the leaves are turning brown mostly the tips and the oldest leaf. I read that ceroxylon like it really moist to wet so I give it a descent amount of water. But now i'm thinking I might give to much water hence the browning. On the other hand it's growing really well it's pushing out a new spear so I'm confused. Maybe someone can elaborate? The environmental stats are 22-28degrees with 90% humidity at all times. 

[richnorm 490]

I my experience they do well in a smaller container than "typical" and do not have a high moisture requirement. I think maybe the waxy covering helps conserve water and allows for a smaller root mass than you might expect.  A light and open growing medium is best.  Good luck!

[climate change virginia 125]

22-28 degrees thats kind of cold I mean thats below freezing that can kill a palm

[Teegurr 97]

 He means celsius.

Unless you're joking of course.

Edited December 17, 2020 by Teegurr

[Ruben D 6]

That was indeed celcius my bad so 70-80 degrees fahrenheit. And i'll slow down a little on the watering. But ceroxylons don't take any drought from what I've read. 

[richnorm 490]

57 minutes ago, Ruben D said:

That was indeed celcius my bad so 70-80 degrees fahrenheit. And i'll slow down a little on the watering. But ceroxylons don't take any drought from what I've read. 

They sure can take a lot of dry in pots so long as humidity is ample.  I have been growing them for 20 years. I have left some plants with minimal care (out of interest to see their limits) and they are really quite tough in my climate. Nothing like, say, Geonomas which cannot miss a watering.

[Ruben D 6]

So you would definitely advise to slow down on the watering?. 

Have you ever seen a ceroxylon trunck in a container? 

[richnorm 490]

1 hour ago, Ruben D said:

So you would definitely advise to slow down on the watering?. 

Have you ever seen a ceroxylon trunck in a container? 

I don't know your watering regime or mix but that plant looks to have unhappy roots so would I definitely try less water.   I have never seen a trunking Ceroxylon in a container.  But I have one quindiense close to 18 years in a pot with 3m leaves whilst it's siblings in the ground are trunking or close to trunking.  Pityrophyllum looks like it would make a good container plant as it has a very skinny trunk and is fast growing.  For some reason I forget, just accumulated intuition really,  I associate alpinum with being more finicky than some of the other species.  Amazonicum seems easiest to grow.   These are just some observations as a hobbyist growing low numbers of plants....

[Ruben D 6]

Thank you! 

The previous owner told me this palm is around 10years now. They're very hard to come by especially here in Europe. I have parvifrons seedlings aswell and they grow so slow I ran an experiment just to know if they grew or not. 

 

[DiegoGM 36]

Try less water. Cerosylon species will love moist soil but not flooded soil. I am growing this in soil and they are free trouble palms.

[Jim in Los Altos 2,356]

4 hours ago, climate change virginia said:

22-28 degrees thats kind of cold I mean thats below freezing that can kill a palm

That’s 72°F to 82°F

[climate change virginia 125]

6 minutes ago, Jim in Los Altos said:

That’s 72°F to 82°F

ohhh Celsius sorry im in the usa im so dumb I should have seen where you live your in europe you guys use Celsius LOL 

Edited December 17, 2020 by climate change virginia

[Jim in Los Altos 2,356]

I water my alpinum three times per week or more here in California. It’s in the ground however. They really like cool temperatures so don’t restrict it to warmth all the time. Too much warmth will slow growth. Mine grows faster in the winter than in the summer. 

Edited December 17, 2020 by Jim in Los Altos

[JLM 514]

1 hour ago, climate change virginia said:

ohhh Celsius sorry im in the usa im so dumb I should have seen where you live your in europe you guys use Celsius LOL 

Your fine lol
Ive done it many times but never commented. Although i realized my mistake before posting and fixed it.

[Ruben D 6]

7 hours ago, Jim in Los Altos said:

I water my alpinum three times per week or more here in California. It’s in the ground however. They really like cool temperatures so don’t restrict it to warmth all the time. Too much warmth will slow growth. Mine grows faster in the winter than in the summer. 

Beautiful specimen! In what zone are you? I'm in a 8b/9a zone but it's europe so very wet... Can't really use US hardiness zones for belgium. So for now i'll keep it in my heated shed. Can't lower the temperatures under 70 fahrenheit for the animals that I keep in there. 

[Jim in Los Altos 2,356]

13 minutes ago, Ruben D said:

Beautiful specimen! In what zone are you? I'm in a 8b/9a zone but it's europe so very wet... Can't really use US hardiness zones for belgium. So for now i'll keep it in my heated shed. Can't lower the temperatures under 70 fahrenheit for the animals that I keep in there. 

I’m in a Mediterranean type climate 10a in the SF Bay Area. Even summer nights are cool so Ceroxylon grow exceptionally well here with no fuss except lots of watering in the summer. It think they are happiest in low to mid 60sF temperatures (15°C-22°C) but will tolerate warmer and cooler temperatures. 

[Josh-O 2,728]

7 hours ago, Jim in Los Altos said:

I water my alpinum three times per week or more here in California. It’s in the ground however. They really like cool temperatures so don’t restrict it to warmth all the time. Too much warmth will slow growth. Mine grows faster in the winter than in the summer. 

awesome !!! looks flawless

[Jim in Los Altos 2,356]

12 minutes ago, Josh-O said:

awesome !!! looks flawless

Thanks Josh. I really enjoy the Ceroxylon genus. I have most of the species. They are indeed fairly slow growers but they look great as trunkless palms too. 

[Tyrone 1,978]

15 hours ago, Ruben D said:

That was indeed celcius my bad so 70-80 degrees fahrenheit. And i'll slow down a little on the watering. But ceroxylons don't take any drought from what I've read. 

That’s too warm. 18-22C with single digit nights is what they really want. You’ve given it low elevation pacific islands weather.

[PalmatierMeg 5,646]

Every time I hear the phrase, "How wet should I.....?", I shudder. Definitely not a palm suitable for FL.

[Ruben D 6]

Little update on the ceroxylon alpinum. 

I kept watering to a minimum and all troubles went away. The leaf has almost been completed and it's allready sending out another beautiful spear. Thanks to everyone for the help.