Adonidia Question

[Hombre de Palmas]

Hello Everyone,

I have been following this forum for awhile and recently joined so that I could participate in the discussions and contribute when I can.

My wife and I have relocated to Florida after spending some years in Costa Rica. I have recently planted a blank canvas as my new home featured grass and more grass and nothing else.

I planted three, 3-clumps of Adonidias in late October of last year. The Adonidias came in 15 Gal pots and were about 8 feet tall, they were very root bound. The nursery told me I only needed to lightly amend my soil so that's what I did. I have since further amended the soil with a lighter mix as I came to realize just how heavy a clay soil I have in my yard.

My question is as follows:

Currently the newest fronds are significantly smaller than previous growth (half the size). They also appeared to have struggled in opening though they did eventually open completely. New spears continue to develop and overall the plants look OK. I fertilized them with Sunniland Palm food with micro nutrients (about 2 cups per clump) about 8 weeks ago. I have been applying Southern Ag Palm Nutritional Spray both to the foliage and soil every 2-3 weeks since February.

We did get several cold nights during the winter, with temps dropping into the mid-upper 30's and highs struggling up to 60. I had light frost damage on a couple of my Brazilian Red Cloaks but no other apparent damage. It appears that the trunks are growing, as the "boots" are falling off the trunks from time to time.

I would appreciate any input.

Also, I want to say that we have received 17 inches of rain since May 13!

 

cheers

 

[V-Cycle]

Welcome to the forum.  Not sure exactly what you are questioning, but the Adonidia is pretty much bullet proof in south Florida.  I see you live in Port Saint Lucie, a bit north of myself approx 40 miles, but I would think that they are still very strong in that area as well.  I would just keep feeding them with a complete fertilizer and not be concerned at this time.  Once established it will grow pretty fast.  Enjoy the rain!

[Hombre de Palmas]

52 minutes ago, V-Cycle said:

Welcome to the forum.  Not sure exactly what you are questioning, but the Adonidia is pretty much bullet proof in south Florida.  I see you live in Port Saint Lucie, a bit north of myself approx 40 miles, but I would think that they are still very strong in that area as well.  I would just keep feeding them with a complete fertilizer and not be concerned at this time.  Once established it will grow pretty fast.  Enjoy the rain!

Thank you for the reply. I rambled a bit, so here is a condensed version.

My concern is that the new fronds are significantly smaller as they are opening, than the previous new growth was when they opened.

You are correct, Christmas Palms, including some over 20 feet, are numerous in this area.

 

[PalmatierMeg]

Welcome to PalmTalk. Photos are really a must to diagnose possible problems. Have you fed any of those palms? Adonidias I've seen with progressively stunted fronds have been neglected and are slowly dying. Adonidias are cheap and prolific to the point of weediness so replacing them is not a problem.

[Rickybobby]

My sunburned adonidia as you can see is opening early. Or before the height of the other fronds. But it will grow up eventually. I wouldn’t worry 

[Rickybobby]

Oh and mine looks so bad because it came from a nursery In Miami probably shaded. Trucked up north and I put it by the pool where it got hit with very dry hot wind for a week. Since I brought it inside it seems to be very happy 

[pj_orlando_z9b]

In Central FL, we have sandy soils that are very low in Manganese. This was my Adonidia when I moved in to the house and 2 years later after a 4x/yr treatment of Manganese Sulfate. I had ripe fruit this winter for the first time.

[Hombre de Palmas]

Thanks for the responses!

I will hunker down and let the "Green Season" do it's work. Here are a couple photos I managed to get when it wasn't raining. (20" since May 13 according to my back-yard rain gauge). The question is, whether to feed them again, although the Sunniland Palm fertilizer is supposed to slow-release even in heavy rainfall.

[pj_orlando_z9b]

37 minutes ago, Hombre de Palmas said:

Thanks for the responses!

I will hunker down and let the "Green Season" do it's work. Here are a couple photos I managed to get when it wasn't raining. (20" since May 13 according to my back-yard rain gauge). The question is, whether to feed them again, although the Sunniland Palm fertilizer is supposed to slow-release even in heavy rainfall.

They look good. I see a slight frizzle on the mature fronds and a some stunted growth. Mostly normal coming out of winter. I would go to Lowes or Home Depot and buy a small bag of manganese sulfate to put down in addition to your fertilizer. It will grow out. 

For your size, I'd spread about a cup or so. Good luck!

Edited May 31, 2018 by pj_orlando_z9b
Added

[PalmatierMeg]

Your palms may have spent years rootbound in their pots and likely weren't fertilized by the nursery. You planted them just before winter in alkaline sand likely devoid of nutrients and with instructions from the nursery to rectify its previous neglect. I suspect Adonidias are marginal palms where you live. Before the palms could establish themselves, they had to survive a cold, dry winter. That's a lot of obstacles for a very cold-sensitive, tropical palm. The stunted fronds may be a result of nutritional deficiencies, winter cold damage and drought. The good news is the sun, heat, humidity and rainfall are back and under those conditions this is a fast growing palm. I don't know much about the Sunniland brand fertilizer. I use an 8-0-10 N-P-K with all minor elements: magnesium, manganese, boron, iron, zinc and more. Minor elements are as important as the majors. So definitely fertilize the palms and monitor them over the next 30 days. Then follow up with more if their condition hasn't improved.

I don't know about your area but here in Lee County we enter "fertilizer blackout" from June 1 through Oct. We are forbidden to broadcast any fertilizer except potassium (K) to protect waterways from fertilizer runoff during rainy season. So you may want to spread fertilizer on those palms ASAP.

[SEPalm]

I would recommend going to Home Depot and grab a bag of the lesco palm and tropical fertilizer. It is better overall then Sunniland. Your palms will grow out of that condition with the proper nutrition and all the advice already posted. I wouldn’t worry at all.

[pj_orlando_z9b]

14 hours ago, PalmatierMeg said:

Your palms may have spent years rootbound in their pots and likely weren't fertilized by the nursery. You planted them just before winter in alkaline sand likely devoid of nutrients and with instructions from the nursery to rectify its previous neglect. I suspect Adonidias are marginal palms where you live. Before the palms could establish themselves, they had to survive a cold, dry winter. That's a lot of obstacles for a very cold-sensitive, tropical palm. The stunted fronds may be a result of nutritional deficiencies, winter cold damage and drought. The good news is the sun, heat, humidity and rainfall are back and under those conditions this is a fast growing palm. I don't know much about the Sunniland brand fertilizer. I use an 8-0-10 N-P-K with all minor elements: magnesium, manganese, boron, iron, zinc and more. Minor elements are as important as the majors. So definitely fertilize the palms and monitor them over the next 30 days. Then follow up with more if their condition hasn't improved.

I don't know about your area but here in Lee County we enter "fertilizer blackout" from June 1 through Oct. We are forbidden to broadcast any fertilizer except potassium (K) to protect waterways from fertilizer runoff during rainy season. So you may want to spread fertilizer on those palms ASAP.

I had heard of the ban but I thought individual homeowners were exempt from the ordinance.  Do you use any other organic treatments in place?

[Hombre de Palmas]

14 hours ago, PalmatierMeg said:

Your palms may have spent years rootbound in their pots and likely weren't fertilized by the nursery. You planted them just before winter in alkaline sand likely devoid of nutrients and with instructions from the nursery to rectify its previous neglect. I suspect Adonidias are marginal palms where you live. Before the palms could establish themselves, they had to survive a cold, dry winter. That's a lot of obstacles for a very cold-sensitive, tropical palm. The stunted fronds may be a result of nutritional deficiencies, winter cold damage and drought. The good news is the sun, heat, humidity and rainfall are back and under those conditions this is a fast growing palm. I don't know much about the Sunniland brand fertilizer. I use an 8-0-10 N-P-K with all minor elements: magnesium, manganese, boron, iron, zinc and more. Minor elements are as important as the majors. So definitely fertilize the palms and monitor them over the next 30 days. Then follow up with more if their condition hasn't improved.

I don't know about your area but here in Lee County we enter "fertilizer blackout" from June 1 through Oct. We are forbidden to broadcast any fertilizer except potassium (K) to protect waterways from fertilizer runoff during rainy season. So you may want to spread fertilizer on those palms ASAP.

Adonidias are ubiquitous here and some are 20+ feet which I suppose means they made it through the 2010 freeze. According to the USDA (and other) hardiness zone maps, we are located in 10A which is similar to Lee County. The Sunniland is slow-release 8-1-6 with minor elements including boron, the lack of which, from what I read, may be the culprit here.

The palms were certainly root-bound but I did notice that the pots contained fertilizer granules and the nursery said they had been on a regular fertilizer schedule.

I think your comment about a cold, dry winter is very accurate, although I did hand water them regularly. I did not fertilize for several months after planting, as I had read that palms should not be fertilized immediately after planting (which I think is true for most plants). I applied fertilizer in late March according to instructions from the manufacturer, coupled with advice from the people at the nursery where I purchased the palms and fertilizer. I have been applying palm nutritional spray, which is a mix of minor elements, both to the soil and foliage. I started the applications in late January and have continued applying per the instructions since then.

My soil is a mix of sand and heavy clay devoid of any nutritional value so I did amend it.

Our blackout period started today so I decided to fertilize them yesterday even though it had not been a full three months.

Thanks for your input Meg. It is a bit humbling to struggle with a plant that seems to be in just about every persons landscape here! I think everyone is right and they will grow out of this phase.

 

11 hours ago, SEPalm said:

I would recommend going to Home Depot and grab a bag of the lesco palm and tropical fertilizer. It is better overall then Sunniland. Your palms will grow out of that condition with the proper nutrition and all the advice already posted. I wouldn’t worry at all.

Thanks, I will try the Lesco next time I fertilize. I had to apply yesterday in order to beat the fertilizer blackout here and had lots of the Sunniland left!

[PalmatierMeg]

I had heard of the ban but I thought individual homeowners were exempt from the ordinance.  Do you use any other organic treatments in place?

Homeowners like me who actually take care of their plants are prime targets of the ban. The ban is targeted toward nitrogen (N) and phosphorous (P) which are prime pollutants of waterways. FL soil is notoriously deficient of potassium so I keep a large back of that, as well as magnesium (Mg, i.e., epsom salt) and manganese (Mn) to spot-treat palms with problems. I haven't bought it but Borax, available in grocery store detergent aisles, contains boron (B). I haven't had problems with boron. I also have a large bag of Southern Ag's Essential Minor Elements, which does not focus on nitrogen and phosphorous, the targets of the ban.

As for organic fertilizers, I've used fish emulsion back when I had fewer palms after PTers highly recommended it. Except for spot-use fish emulsion is no longer practical for me. It takes a lot of hard work to mix with water and distribute, stinks to high heaven and (temporarily) draws every fly in the neighborhood. That aside, it is well worth using and relatively inexpensive. Other people recommend seaweed extract but I've found that hard to find so haven't used it.