Mexican Fan Palm

[adleitko]

I would appreciate some advice.

I have a Mexican Fan Palm that has grown to about 15ft. We planted it about 8 years ago when it was about 4 ft. Here's a photo.

Palm

I am now noticing some funny root growth at the base of the trunk, just above the soil line. It appears that the thin spaghetti-like roots (bright yellow in color) are growing out of the trunk about two or three inches above the soil line and then penetrate the ground. Where the roots emerge from the palm, they "break" the outside layer of the trunk. Otherwise the palm looks healthy.

Picture here: Sorry for the poor quality:

Trunk

For the last two weeks the base of the trunk is often damp in the mornings due to my new sprinkler system.  I will be changing it soon to avoid wetting the trunk. But this problem has been going on before the new sprinkler system was installed.

I have not seen this on the other Mexican Palm next to it. I am certainly no expert on Palms. Is this something I should worry about or need to do something about?

Any advice you might have would be much appreciate.

Thanks for any help...

adleitko

[MattyB]

Hi adleitko,  Welcome to the IPS!  Those new roots pushing out of the base of your Mexican Fan Palm are absolutely normal.  They're called adventitious roots and it's how all palms get thicker and form more root system.  Certain robust palms, like yours,  will form what I've hear called a "root boss" all around the base.  This is basically a ring of new roots pushing through the bark trying to make there way to the ground.  I wouldn't worry about the sprinklers hitting the trunk.  Nice palms dude!

[adleitko]

Thank you MattyB, that is excellent news. I really appreciate you taking the time to answer my post.

Regarding the sprinklers.... not a problem that the water hits the trunk of the palm? I would really like to keep the sprinklers as they are so all the other plants and grass get water. Appreciate your advice.

Alan.

[bgl]

Alan,

Welcome to the IPS Forum! And yes, MattyB is correct. Roots do all sorts of funny things. And I wouldn't worry about the sprinklers.

Just to show you what roots can do, under different circumstances, here are a couple of photos. These are all Clinostigma roots. The first two are C. samoense, and the third and last one is a "mystery" Clinostigma (we don't have a species name yet).

Bo-Göran

Here's a Clinostigma samoense planted under "normal" conditions (i.e. some soil!), and "normal" roots (just below the surface).

[bgl]

And here's a C. samoense planted on top of a little mound. Little, if no, soil there and the roots are desperately looking for soil in all the wrong places!!

[bgl]

And here's the "mystery" Clinostigma. Notice the root that's coming out of the trunk, more than 2 ft above ground level. Just to show that roots do funny things!

[adleitko]

Thanks BGL,

Those photographs sure put my little palm root issue in perspective. I feel much better now knowing that there is nothing wrong with my palm (I can keep my sprinkler system as is, too!!)

Thanks again to you and MattyB for taking the time to post a response... much appreciated!

Alan.

[Zac in NC]

Here is a root system of Washingtonia robusta in Nacapule Canyon in Sonora Mexico. This is about 3 to  4 feet tall. Note the rocks in the root system. I assume this is from erosion of the canyon.

[Kris]

Dear Bo Goran  

those pictures on palm trunks with lots of

roots were very life-like.i felt as though i

was standing beside those lovely palms

myself.

Beautiful close-up.

Thanks,

Kris.

[DoomsDave]

Mexican fan palms don't have much of a problem with too much moisture, unless they're literally swamped all the time.

American fan palms, their cousins, sometimes do.

I think that yours is a Mexican Fan, because of its relatively skinny trunk.  

Still could you do me a favor?  Post a picture of a view up into the crown of leaves so we can see where the petioles join the trunk?  In Mexican fans (and hybrids) those bases are brown; in American Fans, they're green.

And, nice to meet you.  We here are all palm crazy, and hope you will see fit to join us!

dave

[adleitko]

Hi Dave,

Where the petioles join the trunk it is a purple/brown color, not green, which is why I'm quite sure it is a Mexican Fan (and when the landscaper planted it several years back he told me it was a Mexican Fan Palm).

This palm and the smaller one next to it make great additions to our back yard. I wish I had more room for additional large palms. My next step is to look for some smaller ones I can plant around the pool. Any suggestions? I live just outside of Houston, TX  USDA Zone 9a.

By the way, this is a great forum with very knowledgeable posters. I really appreciate all the help I've received regarding my palm concern. I'm probably now hooked on palms since I just ordered some seeds to try my hand at germinating them.

Best regards,

Alan

[MattyB]

There's others who are much more knowledeable about cold hardy palms but here's a few to get you started that should be able to take down to at least 25F:

Queen Palm

Arenga engleri

Chamaedorea radicalis

Serenoa repens

Nannorrhops ritcheana

Dypsis decipiens if your in for the long haul. ::

[DoomsDave]

Alan:

Sounds like you're on the money, bro.

dave

[satbjd]

Hi adleitko. Back in 2006, you posted about the exposed roots of your Mexican fan palm. If you still live in the house, could you please share how the palm is doing today? Has its base started to push up the ground around it, disrupting pavers? This is the issue I'm dealing with. I'm hoping to solve the problem by giving it more space, but my landscaper thinks it will just continue to spread and any new pavers will eventually pop up like the old ones. He thinks I should have it removed. 😢

[Little Tex]

14 hours ago, satbjd said:

Hi adleitko. Back in 2006, you posted about the exposed roots of your Mexican fan palm. If you still live in the house, could you please share how the palm is doing today? Has its base started to push up the ground around it, disrupting pavers? This is the issue I'm dealing with. I'm hoping to solve the problem by giving it more space, but my landscaper thinks it will just continue to spread and any new pavers will eventually pop up like the old ones. He thinks I should have it removed. 😢

He hasn’t visited the forum in almost 17 years, and judging by his location, his palms are most likely dead. Would you mind supplying pictures so that other forum members, myself included can properly assess the situation?