Chamaedorea Oblongata

[Robert D. Young]

Anyone else grow chamaedorea oblongata? 

[Robert D. Young]

I actually bought this in 2019 with a chamaedorea elegans batch. Usually growers stick 20-40 palms in one pot to make it look fuller. Over time, the weaker palms die, leaving (hopefully) a few strong survivors that  develop trunks. Some 3.5 years later, this particular pot is down to 4 remaining survivors. By far the tallest is the chamaedorea oblongata (which sometimes get mixed in with elegans). On either side are two mature c. elegans, one of which is putting out two inflorescences.

[Robert D. Young]

3 minutes ago, Robert D. Young said:

I actually bought this in 2019 with a chamaedorea elegans batch. Usually growers stick 20-40 palms in one pot to make it look fuller. Over time, the weaker palms die, leaving (hopefully) a few strong survivors that  develop trunks. Some 3.5 years later, this particular pot is down to 4 remaining survivors. By far the tallest is the chamaedorea oblongata (which sometimes get mixed in with elegans). On either side are two mature c. elegans, one of which is putting out two inflorescences.

Here is a view from further down, showing more of the trunks 

[amh]

I have a bunch of seedlings myself, but they will take some time to get tall. Is yours a year round indoor plant or do you just bring it inside for the cold?

[Robert D. Young]

5 hours ago, amh said:

I have a bunch of seedlings myself, but they will take some time to get tall. Is yours a year round indoor plant or do you just bring it inside for the cold?

I live in the Atlanta area so I definitely keep it inside during the Cold Season. I put this outside on the patio from April to October. It needs partial shade to avoid sun damage but I have some Areca and Adonidia palms that add a partial Sun ⛅ buffer. This chamaedorea oblongata is likely at least 8 years old. The Atlanta nurseries import these from the Miami area 🌴 and this one was rather well established although it has continued to gain further height. This planter I also kept indoors on a 5th floor office for two years, oblongata tolerates indoors better than the elegans. Notice of the original estimated 40 palms only 4 are still alive. But 3 of them are quite mature in trunk size.

Edited March 3, 2023 by Robert D. Young

[Robert D. Young]

Note, I also have a smaller chamaedorea oblongata...again, it was potted with c. elegans. This smaller one came from a grocery store so totally unexpected to find this. I immediately recognized it was different...

[Robert D. Young]

Just now, Robert D. Young said:

Note, I also have a smaller chamaedorea oblongata...again, it was potted with c. elegans. This smaller one came from a grocery store so totally unexpected to find this. I immediately recognized it was different...

You can see the brown leaf damage on the c. elegans. I have not figured out the cause. This one was bought in April 2018 and did very well for 4 years. Not sure if this decline is sun damage ☀️, biological attack (insects or fungus), or wrong soil/fertilizer formulation. Advice for getting this one back on track is appreciated. It appears the c. oblongata will survive, but the c. elegans are under visible stress...😬🤷🏻‍♂️

[PalmatierMeg]

I'm thinking spider mites on the C. elegans. Mites were a nightmare when I lived in VA and had to bring palms indoors for the winter.

[amh]

Spider mites are very likely the culprit, but a buildup of salt(s) from fertilizer or your water could also be the cause. Are you using soft water or in proximity to a bright light?

[Patrick]

Dude, that oblongata is beautiful! 

So check it out, if it's all the time indoors, just give it a shower, in the shower, like Every couple weeks or more. I don’t wanna sound kinky but maybe you could get in there with it and scrub all the leaves with your fingers, or not. Idk, I'm probably blocked now. Bottom line, I think you have bugs like the others are saying. Yes, you can drown the mites, but they lay eggs, and the whole thing perpetuates until you can break the cycle. So you two may need to have a sultry shower from time to time. 

The bugs probably found a nice home on your plant outdoors in the summer, and once you brought it in they proliferated in your ideal indoor conditions. Ask me how I know. 

 

Also, get a spray bottle. The Zep one from the orange big box store- it's really good quality. Put a few drops of dish soap in it and fill it with water. Spray liberally. That will really kill those little jerks. Use this when y'all can't shower together; maybe every 3 or 4 days under the leaves liberally until the problem goes away. It will probably take a month to finally kill all the little buggers. They're worse than rabbits.

I do this for mealybugs, too. But not the shower part. Bugs in my shower--- ewwwww! /s

 

Showers will help fix both salt and bug problems. The salt will leech and bleed out, and though we want the bugs to also bleed out a horrible death like they were a rival gang in the favelas of Brazil, they will just simply die. Shucks. 

Edited March 9, 2023 by Patrick

[Phoenikakias]

On 3/2/2023 at 11:56 PM, Robert D. Young said:

Anyone else grow chamaedorea oblongata? 

I do not see any elegans in the picture!

[Phoenikakias]

On 3/3/2023 at 12:05 AM, Robert D. Young said:

Here is a view from further down, showing more of the trunks 

Internodal distance and size of leaves are way too big, for a true elegans!

[Robert D. Young]

21 hours ago, Phoenikakias said:

Internodal distance and size of leaves are way too big, for a true elegans!

I'm willing to hear your alternative hypothesis as to the species. But other than the oblongata in the center, the rest of the palms are clearly elegans. Internodal distance varies with growing conditions. These palms were grown in South Florida before being shipped to Atlanta.🌴🌴🌅😎

[Robert D. Young]

On 2/21/2023 at 3:44 PM, ewaforevah said:

I'm a newb, looking to this wonderful forum for advice.  I picked up a bunch of 3gal and 7gal dypsis lutescens for outdoor privacy.   Since it's in a concrete area, they will remain in a pot of some sort.  Right now they're 4-5ft and I'll need them to reach the 6-8ft range.  Do I need to repot them? I'm perfectly content leaving them in the black nursery pots if repotting isn't necessary.  What are the potential issues if I do keep them in the original pots?  If I do repot them, any tips, advice or good resources on how to do it? How tricky is it to do and not kill the palm?  Thanks!

Maximum growing size is limited by pot size. A larger pot permits more growth. I have some dypsis luteschens in the 6-8 foot range and my tallest is 13 feet high. 

 

[Phoenikakias]

6 hours ago, Robert D. Young said:

I'm willing to hear your alternative hypothesis as to the species. But other than the oblongata in the center, the rest of the palms are clearly elegans. Internodal distance varies with growing conditions. These palms were grown in South Florida before being shipped to Atlanta.🌴🌴🌅😎

I can not see any resemblance, sorry. Only chance that both plants are C elegans, is that there are various forms. TBH your plants remind me more of a tall sp like costaricana, pochutlensis etc

[Robert D. Young]

9 hours ago, Phoenikakias said:

I can not see any resemblance, sorry. Only chance that both plants are C elegans, is that there are various forms. TBH your plants remind me more of a tall sp like costaricana, pochutlensis etc

When I bought this palm pot in 2019 it was listed as chamaedorea elegans. As typical with these kinds of arrangements, it was about 40 palms in one pot. Over time, the weaker ones for the most part died off. Now down to 4 left. It's clear the one in the center is a chamaedorea oblongata. For the other two mid sized ones, I'll consider more research (chamaedorea costaricana) because I'm interested in knowing more.. would be more exciting if they are! The final small palm left does appear to be elegans but it's not noticeable compared to the other three towering over it. I will have more photos. The second-biggest palm is now flowering and has produced yellow seeds! 

 

[Robert D. Young]

2 minutes ago, Robert D. Young said:

When I bought this palm pot in 2019 it was listed as chamaedorea elegans. As typical with these kinds of arrangements, it was about 40 palms in one pot. Over time, the weaker ones for the most part died off. Now down to 4 left. It's clear the one in the center is a chamaedorea oblongata. For the other two mid sized ones, I'll consider more research (chamaedorea costaricana) because I'm interested in knowing more.. would be more exciting if they are! The final small palm left does appear to be elegans but it's not noticeable compared to the other three towering over it. I will have more photos. The second-biggest palm is now flowering and has produced yellow seeds! 

 

 

[Robert D. Young]

9 hours ago, Phoenikakias said:

I can not see any resemblance, sorry. Only chance that both plants are C elegans, is that there are various forms. TBH your plants remind me more of a tall sp like costaricana, pochutlensis etc

How tall is your tallest c. Elegans? Got any for sale? 

[Robert D. Young]

After noticing the coloration of my palm seeds, I think chamaedorea pochutlensis (first one has yellow inflorescences) matches, not the costaricana (red and black)... second image.

[Phoenikakias]

Those are flowers, not seeds. On many Chamaedorea spp flowers turn reddish as they age and start desiccating.  Latter is the case also with costaricana, but fertile flowers of this sp are yellow.  Other feature is  crucial for the identification of costaricana.

[Robert D. Young]

Ok, let's wait and see what color these flowers turn after being fertilized and become seeds. By the way, this is the first time this palm is putting out flowers since I bought it in 2019. Not sure what changed to encourage flowering.

[Phoenikakias]

4 hours ago, Robert D. Young said:

Ok, let's wait and see what color these flowers turn after being fertilized and become seeds. By the way, this is the first time this palm is putting out flowers since I bought it in 2019. Not sure what changed to encourage flowering.

Good growing conditions, which must be credited to you. But flowers need to be female and another male plant needs to be growing closely and be blooming simultaneously, so that your female plant sets fruit.

Forgot to mention, that in female flower stalks rachilae (not flowers) turn to orange color after fertility of flowers has passed and especially when some fruits have been set. 

Edited March 14, 2023 by Phoenikakias

[Robert D. Young]

On 3/14/2023 at 1:25 AM, Phoenikakias said:

Good growing conditions, which must be credited to you. But flowers need to be female and another male plant needs to be growing closely and be blooming simultaneously, so that your female plant sets fruit.

Forgot to mention, that in female flower stalks rachilae (not flowers) turn to orange color after fertility of flowers has passed and especially when some fruits have been set. 

The only possible other palm similar to this one I have is in the same pot, but not flowering at the moment. Maybe in the future I'll get more...

[miamicuse]

I just bought two seedlings of Chamaedorea Oblongata but they look very different from the more mature palms in these pictures.  Do I have Chamaedorea Oblongata?

I understand their flowers are very fragrant.  What size do they start flowering?  and how can I tell if I have male or female?

[Robert D. Young]

On 4/1/2023 at 10:11 PM, miamicuse said:

I just bought two seedlings of Chamaedorea Oblongata but they look very different from the more mature palms in these pictures.  Do I have Chamaedorea Oblongata?

I understand their flowers are very fragrant.  What size do they start flowering?  and how can I tell if I have male or female?

Yes, that's almost certainly chamaedorea oblongata. Chamaedorea Metallica has similar leaf shape but dark silver green sheen. 

[Robert D. Young]

Update: my largest chamaedorea has put out a new frond! Beautiful! 🌴🏝️

[Robert D. Young]

3 minutes ago, Robert D. Young said:

Update: my largest chamaedorea has put out a new frond! Beautiful! 🌴🏝️

This is the "miracle" plant I dreamed of for many years! 😁💭🌴🏝️! I wanted a chamaedorea with a trunk. When I bought this in 2019 it was under 4 feet. It's now 5 feet 10 inches high (taller than me!). The chamaedorea pochutlensis (one on each side) add to the Aesthetics as sidekicks. By the way, the final palm in this pot might not be c. elegans, either... the basal leaf structure looks more like the pochutlensis! Thanks for the educational advice! One more thing, you'll notice the leaf damage from spider mites remains an issue. Water seems to help but has to be done repeatedly. And the time I tried insecticide, that frond died (you can see the base of it).