A fielded lot next door to me was cleared on Monday. They pulled at 16ft Sabal Palm up with a good size root ball that remained attached.  The construction crew was nice enough to lay it in my backyard because I wanted to plant it. Here's the problem:

1. I couldn't get a planter out until tomorrow morning. This means it will be out of the ground, lying on its side for 4+ days

2. I did not know how the root system works on palms so the fronds were left on for two days before I read they should be removed for  - about 15 of them. I have cut them down and left the youngest one. Also, cut off the lower portion of the boots. 

3. I was away for two days and it did not get watered adequately during that time.

4. I have since wet some of the ground mixture and tried to artificially enlarge the root ball to retain moisture. When I water it, the mixture was melting off. The ground is very sandy here. 

5. I tried to "wrap" it with what I had also but that was a fail since I had no commercial-grade burlap. 

This was an absolute impulsive move on my part, but the tree is beautiful and I wanted to try and save it. However, I'm wondering if it's too late to be saved due to the time it's been out of the ground. I have read the more mature palms with developed trunks have better chances of regeneration. By the size of the tree, my reading has led me to believe it is about 30-45 years old. I just wanted to see if anyone has had a similar experience with transplanting a sabal that hasn't been prepped and managed according the the standard care guidelines and what were your results. Do you think it has a chance once in the ground? 

 

TIA - Pictures added for reference 

 

   You've done what is reasonable . These palms are transported by the big truck full , large distances sometimes with the roots basically shaved down to about 1/2 or less of what you have there .  You could cover the dirt that you've thrown on there with just about anything , to reduce evaporation , but right now we're having a fairly humid air mass over the State , so it should work out .

    High chance that it'll survive just fine .  Since it is early in the growing season , conditions are ideal .      Patience , and making sure that it has sufficient water are the key after planting .

I think you have a very good chance of success considering how these are harvested and shipped.  Keep it well watered, staked from three sides and a lot of patience.  Good luck!

Its up. I gave it a good soak after it got in the ground. 

Please keep us updated on its progress

27 minutes ago, Leelanau Palms said:

Please keep us updated on its progress

Will do!

Maybe it’s just the picture, but the ground around the palm looks slightly elevated to flat around it. Make sure to build a berm around the perimeter of where the rootball is located to ensure the water percolates down and does not runoff. 

@Hurricanepalms

I did level it out some because the planters put a mound up around the base of it at first. I will put a berm up as I was worried about the water permeating fully. The planters didnt soak the soil as I saw on some videos but it been mild weather and the sandy mixture was lightly moist. I have watered it and since the ground is mostly sand Im hoping it retains the moisture. Its low 70s amd sunny today, hoping the big guy can settle in comfortably.

CentralFloridaGal,   Congratulations, and Welcome to Palmtalk !  

Sabal palms of this size are frequently transplanted by cutting all the roots and fronds off. They are planted and supported in the manner that yours was done. The roots will eventually grow and after that occurs you should see some top growth. Keep it well watered since your soil is all sand. Some mulch added in the dug out area would also help. Don’t try to promote growth with fertilizer. You shouldn’t worry about the few days that it sat there. That probably didn’t change the outcome at all.

Good job , best of luck for success. Instant gratification! Once a couple of fronds develop you should be good to go.

The berm is up now. One other question... how much water is sufficient. I read 20 to 25 gallons for younger trees but this guy is a golden oldie. I am watering now once in the morning and once in the evening about 10 to 15 gallons per session.

Update 7 months later....

He is doing great and fronds are growing!! Thank you for all the advice! 

2 years later....

It has yet to recover a full frond spread. The initial fronds that were cut down to the cigar shape did grow out but died shortly after. It still grows green fronds, but slowly. Hoping this summer will be it's year to come back with a full spread.

Hopefully, someone in Central Florida like @Merlyn will answer. To me, it looks bad. It should have 8 to 10 fronds given the climate there. Perhaps drying out initially is the problem or lack of watering.

36 minutes ago, SeanK said:

Hopefully, someone in Central Florida like @Merlyn will answer. To me, it looks bad. It should have 8 to 10 fronds given the climate there. Perhaps drying out initially is the problem or lack of watering.

Yea 2 years it should be decent.  I would put 2 cups of osmocote plus outdoor or florikan around it and water well and see what gives.  That way it would have all nutrients slow release for a few months

@CentralFloridaGal what have you been giving it for fertilizer?  I'd think 2 years is more than enough for it to grow out a full crown of good fronds.  Have you noticed any "yellow tips" on the older fronds?  Or any unusual physical distortion of the leaves?  It does look a bit "pencil pointed" in the original and new photos.  Sometimes that's just a lack of nutrients.  

The first year I sprinkled some Palm food around the base. The green shake and feed. Last year I spread some of the palm soil around the base also. 

@CentralFloridaGal the typical "rule of thumb" for fertilizer is 1.5lb of 8-2-12 ratio per 100sqft of palm canopy area.  For a normal Sabal that's about 10ft crown diameter = 5*5*3.1415 = 78sqft.  So roughly 1.5lb * 78 / 100 = 1.2lb of 8-2-12 fertilizer 4x per year.  For the 4.5lb container you'd use approximately 1/4 of it each time you fertilize.  

I personally wouldn't bother adding any additional soil.  Adding soil too high on the trunk can be counterproductive, and actually cause lower trunk rot.  Too low can "girdle" a palm and cause it to not grow roots, or make the base weak in storms.  A PT Director in CA wrote the below article on proper planting depth.  I'd recommend reading it and taking a look at how deep your palm is planted.  In the photos it's hard to guess if it's too high, too low, or just right.  Anywhere "reasonably close" is fine.  But if the soil level is a little bit too high or low it might be worth grading it an inch or so either way:

http://www.marriedtoplants.com/palms/palm-tree-growing-tips-mounding/