Canary Island Date Palm Care

[MikeGSoCal]

So I just bought a new house and it has a huge CID Palm in the front. I just had it trimmed up and it’s looking great. But I’m wondering about the ground cover that’s grown all over the base of the trunk. Would I be ok Remington all that or would it harm the Palm?  

 

Thanks guys. 

[Jim in Los Altos]

The ice plant is not harming the palm but if you’d rather expose the base of that palm, go ahead and remove the ice plant. I have all kinds of stuff growing on my mature Canary Island Date palm’s trunk like bromeliads, succulents, etc.  

[Kris]

Dear Mike,

That's a beautiful palm and its has been perfectly trimmed.

Love,

Kris.

[Merlyn]

I'm not sure what you mean by "Remington all that," I'm guessing that's a phone autocorrect and you don't plan on shooting it all off of there with a 12 gauge!   

I'd take it all off of there by hand and not with a sawzall.  On palm trunks you are better off not messing with the older leaf bases, disturbing them when they've been there for 20+ years is just an invitation for rot, fungi or other diseases to enter.  The plants probably aren't harming anything, I have seen quite a few CIDP with ferns growing in the old leaf bases.  So you could leave it if you want.

[Jim in Los Altos]

16 hours ago, Merlyn2220 said:

I'm not sure what you mean by "Remington all that," I'm guessing that's a phone autocorrect and you don't plan on shooting it all off of there with a 12 gauge!   

I'd take it all off of there by hand and not with a sawzall.  On palm trunks you are better off not messing with the older leaf bases, disturbing them when they've been there for 20+ years is just an invitation for rot, fungi or other diseases to enter.  The plants probably aren't harming anything, I have seen quite a few CIDP with ferns growing in the old leaf bases.  So you could leave it if you want.

San Diego has much drier air than anywhere in Florida. It's a desert like climate but cooler. Removing the leaf bases is very common here in CA and poses no threat to the palm's health. I personally have left mine alone but the bases are now falling off on their own.