Lazy way to skin a Palm tree

[Palmfarmer]

I thought about some lazy ways to do it.

could using a pressure washer do the trick?

Perhaps touch it up with a weed burner/torch to get rid of the "hairs" on the trunk as well

Edited September 21, 2024 by Palmfarmer
typo

[Jim in Los Altos]

TJ, there’s really no quick easy way to skin a palm tree species that holds its old petiole bases tightly. Pressure washing will likely have little to no effect unless the palm is already shedding and the “boots” are loose. A weed torch will singe off hairs but you run the risk of charring the palm’s trunk also. 
 

Years ago I saw a video of a machine that a man had built to clean the trunks of acres of palms he owned. The gasoline powered machine circled the trunk while slowly climbing and cleared off old dead palm trunk material similarly to how people do it by hand with a carpet knife. 

[idontknowhatnametuse]

Which species?

[Palmfarmer]

7 hours ago, idontknowhatnametuse said:

Which species?

Washies 

[Palmfarmer]

On 9/21/2024 at 12:47 AM, Jim in Los Altos said:

TJ, there’s really no quick easy way to skin a palm tree species that holds its old petiole bases tightly. Pressure washing will likely have little to no effect unless the palm is already shedding and the “boots” are loose. A weed torch will singe off hairs but you run the risk of charring the palm’s trunk also. 
 

Years ago I saw a video of a machine that a man had built to clean the trunks of acres of palms he owned. The gasoline powered machine circled the trunk while slowly climbing and cleared off old dead palm trunk material similarly to how people do it by hand with a carpet knife. 

It would be on some washies with somewhat lose boots. Plan was an industrial pressure washer then rip of the most stubborn ones and carefully torch the hairs. Yes it can "char" but It needs a lot of fire for that to happen. I have seen palm trees burnt down here completely. they of course had a lot of char on them, but they looked great the next year. 

[JohnStraz]

there are lazers that people are using to trim all kinds of trees now. this may be something that you can use

[Palmfarmer]

4 hours ago, JohnStraz said:

there are lazers that people are using to trim all kinds of trees now. this may be something that you can use

yes I saw some guy  prune of a frond using a lazer on a queen. 

Here they do the more primitive method sometimes, Setting them on fire. Downside of fire method is that it takes around 1 year for the palm to look good again, but when it does its almost perfection. Obviously some palms die from it as well.