Bought a Jelly/Pindo Palm a year ago and it's not looking great. (UK)

[Drekly]

I bought a relatively expensive pindo/jelly palm last year, in Cornwall, UK.

It was kept in close proximity to hundreds of other palms, in a pot. It had curved leaves because of the closeness of the other palms, which I thought would straighten out when we got it home and in the ground.

It didn't straighten out, and it seems to not be growing at all. Everything else in our garden is happy and thriving, but perhaps our most expensive plant is sitting dormant, and possibly deteriorating, and making the place look like a mess!

I checked on it this week, and noticed it now has developed some odd spots on the leaves which look like a mold or infestation of some kind? We have clay soil, but I dug a huge hole around it and filled it with a better-draining sand, manure and a perlite mix before planting. I'm not sure what other information would be useful!

I thought I'd make an account here to ask for help, as I'm way beyond my comfort zone, and I want to make this plant healthy, happy and beautiful!

[Merlyn]

It may take 6 months to a year for a palm to really grow into the surrounding soil and start growing new fronds, especially if it's in a cool climate like Cornwall.  Butia are really hardy but just not really fast growing.  I'd recommend marking the new spear horizontally with a sharpie (or other black permanent marker) so you can see if the new fronds are growing.  If they are steadily moving over the summer then it's probably just slow-ish due to the species, the climate, and maybe fertilization.

The white spots are mealybugs, and will definitely damage your palm and slow down the growth by 50% or more.  Get rid of those asap.  An insecticidal soap, mixed with an organophosphate like Malathion or Acephate or similar, and a systemic like Dinotefuran or Imadicloprid are all good solutions.  Just washing them off is an easy and quick solution, then check weekly to see if they are trying to come back. 

A good handful of 8-2-12 "palm special" fertilizer will help.  Anything with a formulation similar to PalmGain is a good choice.  Just sprinkle evenly under the "canopy" of fronds and don't chuck it in a pile.  4x per year is what I do here in the swamplands of Florida.

[Patrick]

I'll comment more tomorrow, but that white stuff under the leaves looks like mealybugs. Pesticide or soapy water in a spray bottle kills them, but you have to be persistent. 

 

Palm looks healthy overall, you just have some minor remedial action to take for the bugs. 

Is the UK a PITA for getting  chemicals? Something with Imadacloprid might do the job. Bayer sells a product here in the US, but I don't know what you have out there...

Do not cut any leaves. Please. We all beg of you. 

Ps, I'm Irish. If you need me to mow your lawn, give me a call

Edited September 8, 2023 by Patrick

[Phoenikakias]

Like the previous members replied! As an additional remark,  you have mentioned curved leaves, which in your opinion is not the normal look of a Butia, I can not see however nothing abnormal  on this plant. Just mind that Butia as a genus is not very fond of either alkaline or clay soil. I wouldvbe very careful on the use of chemical fertilizers under those conditions and use rather organics and iron chelate.

[PalmatierMeg]

The palm looks overall healthy to me. But I do notice that it is surrounded by very long grass. Rampant grasses and weeds outgrow and divert nutrients from your palms. I suggest you cut the grass and pull out the weedy vegetation stifling the palm in a 1 meter diameter circle around the base of the palm. Then lay a good mulch in the circle to keep weeds at bay.

[Merlyn]

@Drekly btw there is a lot of variation in frond shape, as Konstantinos mentioned.  The majority of Butia have a long arching frond with draping leaflets.  There's an unusual type called "Strictior" that has very straight fronds and stiff straight leaflets.  Some have a pronounced "twist" to the fronds so they end up almost swirling around the trunk.  And others have a big arch to the frond but very stiff leaflets.  Yours is probably somewhere in the middle, and not at all unusual.  See the photos here for an idea of the different shapes:

https://www.palmpedia.net/wiki/Butia_odorata

[PindoPalm]

It looks great i do not see anything wrong with it?