Over fertilized coconut?

[Jegs]

I have a coconut palm that was showing signs of nutrient deficiency. (Lighter colored and speckled on older leaves.)

So I gave it a finger full (maybe half a tablespoon) of PalmGain 8-2-12 and it seems to have stunted it and hurt it.

I didn’t think that little of fertilizer would hurt it, but am I wrong? 
 

I live in Zone 8a-b but all my palms are kept in a heated greenhouse that is kept at 65-75 degrees. 

 

[happypalms]

Fertiliser get it wrong and a palm can take years to recover or worse never recover and die. I learnt the hard way like many with fertiliser and palms. So now I only use organic fertiliser in liquid form seaweed or kelp fish emulsion or liquid blood and bone. Plants are like a baby you can’t force feed them a little goes a long way. My view on fertiliser less is best it all begins with your soil get it right and your problems are over get it wrong and your problems get worse. 

[Johnny Palmseed]

From your picture I’m not seeing anything wrong with it. It looks pretty normal. The amount of fertilizer used does not sound significant enough to have caused damage. Although I would agree with @happypalms in that organic fertilizer would be best until the plant is mature.

[Harry’s Palms]

I use an EB Stone fertilizer that mixes with the top soil . It is a powdery organic and I only use it on palms that need an extra bump . I have used it on a couple of potted palms but it does have a slight odor so only outdoors . I have no house plants . Harry

a bit of a side note , that Coconut is going to also want lots of sun light to grow well.

[SeanK]

No need for ferts in the winter. Look at the pine trees in February; they're yellowing b/c metabolism is slow.

(edit) 65° to 70° is cool for a coconut palm.

[Merlyn]

@Jegs it's normal for shade-grown nursery palms to grow shorter leaves once they aren't under shade cloth.  It's also normal for them to grow shorter fronds in winter.  As Sean said, 65-75F is pretty cool for a coconut.  It's probably growing slowly.  The new leaf looks nice and deep green.

[Jegs]

The greenhouse is hand built and wrapped in clear plastic and 65-75 is the minimum temperature. During daylight it reaches 85-95 and nighttime is reaches 65-75. 
 

I just got the coconut (already sprouted) right before winter and potted it. The roots finally got established 2-3 weeks ago and it started to push a new spear and formed into a frond in about 1 week. The second frond was pushing good, but the leaves didn’t look as healthy as the older ones. (Could be from the winter time as y’all’s comments suggested though.)
 

The new frond was lighter green and I started noticing necrotic spots on the older leaves, so I figured nutrient. I’m gun-shy with fertilizer since I’ve learned my lesson and killed smaller palms =\
 

This is my first year collecting and growing palms so I’ve got a lot to learn through trial and error. 
 

The greenhouse faces south, so in my location the sun hits it from sunrise to sunset, no obstructions. The coconut isn’t obstructed from any foliage because of its light requirements. 

[Fusca]

@Jegs, even though your coconut is good sized it's still a seedling.  It gets all the nutrients it needs from the seed so no fertilizer is needed until it uses up the seed.  I don't know how long that would be for a coconut but I would assume it would be a long time due to the size of the seed! 

[Jegs]

4 minutes ago, Fusca said:

@Jegs, even though your coconut is good sized it's still a seedling.  It gets all the nutrients it needs from the seed so no fertilizer is needed until it uses up the seed.  I don't know how long that would be for a coconut but I would assume it would be a long time due to the size of the seed! 

Thanks for the advice! I didn’t know that. 
 

[Jegs]

Thanks for all the advice given in this thread.

I will keep a close eye on the coconut and update after some time has passed.

[Jegs]

Normal growth has resumed.
luckily I did not hurt it!

[Johnny Palmseed]

On 12/29/2024 at 8:26 AM, Harry’s Palms said:

I use an EB Stone fertilizer that mixes with the top soil . It is a powdery organic and I only use it on palms that need an extra bump . I have used it on a couple of potted palms but it does have a slight odor so only outdoors . I have no house plants . Harry

a bit of a side note , that Coconut is going to also want lots of sun light to grow well.

I had never heard of this brand. Maybe it has been a California local thing. They have quite the selection of organics including greensand which has been difficult to find. I have used Palm Tone from Espoma which is a very similar mix of ingredients. And yes, it does stink. Outdoors only!