Treatment after a hard freeze or ice event

[Advective]

My palms have become too large or too thorny to wrap the spear leaf before a bad weather event. I'm going to use a hairdryer where the spear emerges after the precipitation stops but would pouring something in the spear be beneficial?

Hydrogen peroxide? Daconil? Other?

[Allen]

Use a leaf blower to dry crown as well, but what temps are we talking and what palm?  Copper fungicide is beneficial if high risk or actual fungus or hydrogen peroxide in crown.  I wouldn't do it unless actual risk.

Edited January 9, 2021 by Allen

[Palm D]

I don't think using peroxide would be harmful unless you are expecting another freeze as peroxide will quickly turn to oxygen and water and the water could refreeze.  Also peroxide is beneficial for fighting bacteria, fungus which usually happens much after cold damage sets in.  Again, nothing against using it as a preventative though.

[Xenon]

Not going to get cold enough to do much damage unless you are pushing zone 10+ palms in zone 8 

[PalmTreeDude]

Just keep them dry and they should be fine, add hydrogen peroxide to the spear if you see any damage after the freeze, but don’t add any if another freeze is expected anytime soon after. Where are you in Texas? 

[Chester B]

If you run that hair dryer with heat you’ll cause damage. Cool air only, I’ve seen others do it and cause real damage to the center spear. 

[Advective]

 

3 hours ago, Chester B said:

If you run that hair dryer with heat you’ll cause damage. Cool air only, I’ve seen others do it and cause real damage to the center spear. 

I checked the hairdryer and it does have a cool setting so I'll use that. The one time I didn't wrap the Sabal during an ice event, it spear pulled so I want to be on the cautious side

[Chester B]

4 hours ago, Advective said:

 

I checked the hairdryer and it does have a cool setting so I'll use that. The one time I didn't wrap the Sabal during an ice event, it spear pulled so I want to be on the cautious side

Definitely.  If you use the cool setting to dry things off you should be ok, the wet cold followed by hot heat is a recipe for disaster.

[GregVirginia7]

On 1/9/2021 at 12:37 PM, Advective said:

My palms have become too large or too thorny to wrap the spear leaf before a bad weather event. I'm going to use a hairdryer where the spear emerges after the precipitation stops but would pouring something in the spear be beneficial?

Hydrogen peroxide? Daconil? Other?

I do a treatment of copper fungicide after a rainy episode where freezing temps are part of the mix...avoid small incandescent lights in combination with burlap...wet/damp burlap with lights or just wet burlap alone sets up a fungal invasion that will infect the emerging edge of the spear and weaken it to the point that it won’t be able to support the growth as it emerges...it was a self-imposed disaster for my Trachy but it recovered nicely...I’d say treat with the anti-fungal and let it be... I can still get lights wrapped around the crown on my Trachy but will only insulate if need be with frost cloth which seems to repel water and will get the frost cloth off as soon as possible...Will take low teens to trigger that.

[Collectorpalms]

I believe copper fungicide and etc... products need to be applied before a cold event and will not be absorbed once nearly killed. 
A late summer application of fertilizer of like 0-4-2 with micronutrients helps. Like Sol - pol-mag . Beefs them up. 

In spring as soon as Late February for zone 8, hit them with a liquid Calcium nitrate. The nitrate form of nitrogen can be adsorbed below 60f soil temperature. This will try to push new growth before they stall out and die from a defoliation. 
 

In a cold event the meristem must not be killed. So wrapping the top of trunk really does make sense. However if your growing a palm like a Queen, even if the meristem survives and the trunk froze, you will get a horrible trunk damage that may eventually weaken it. That’s what I have experienced with mature palms. 

Edited January 11, 2021 by Collectorpalms

[Allen]

2 hours ago, Collectorpalms said:

I believe copper fungicide and etc... products need to be applied before a cold event and will not be absorbed once nearly killed. 
A late summer application of fertilizer of like 0-4-2 with micronutrients helps. Like Sol - pol-mag . Beefs them up. 

 

Unharmed palm tissue is resistant to fungus which are around all the plants constantly.  But cold injury damages the delicate tissues of the palm starting with the more delicate spear first which will allow fungus to grow in the spear area on the damaged tissue in winter because the palms are basically dormant and this damaged tissue is sitting in the crown area with fungus growing.  Higher daytime temps/moisture afterward then allow the fungus to grow.  Once higher temps hit the crown area and moisture is there the fungus will grow causing damage to the spear first as that is the weakest tissue. If unchecked the fungus can invade the palm heart which is generally tougher as well killing the palm.  So treatment after the event has the benefit of killing this fungal growth.  Palms can exhibit this fungal growth weeks or months after cold damage here because they are pushing spears so slowly the damage does not show for some time.  So a cold damage palm should be treated with Hydrogen peroxide or copper fungicide after the event if there if high likelihood of cold damage.  This treatment may need to be done weekly or monthly for a while till new spear growth is safe.  

The confusion may be that some people in colder zones like me if protecting a palm with a enclosure and keeping it completely dry may elect to spray copper fungicide on a palm before covering it to insure that any fungus in there doesn't do damage.  

Edited January 11, 2021 by Allen

[Collectorpalms]

Hydrogen peroxide certainly will help Alert you to clean up dead rotting tissue. 
I do not recall where I got the information about the copper fungicide needing to be in the system Already..... but I just read an article from MS university that you can drench a crown Immediately in it after the fact, so I guess it wouldn’t hurt. 

Edited January 11, 2021 by Collectorpalms