Foxtail Disease Help

[CobraPalm]

What’s up yall, this is my first post here. I have two foxtail palms I purchased recently. The past winter storm Enzo that blew through here in Houston I had the palms in my big garage standing upright for protection out of the cold. They are still potted and about 14ft tall with pot. I’m waiting to plant them in the ground until early spring. They have been inside the garage prior to the previous freeze. Maybe about 3 weeks since it’s just been constantly dipping into the mid 30s here lately. I haven’t been watering them much as it’s not hot here and the soil is very dry although I did give them a mild watering last night. Prior to the two cold fronts they were outside and it had been humid here with cooler weather but not cold. I attached some pictures for reference but when I pulled them out early this morning for some sun I noticed all the leaves were covered in brown spotting which I assume is disease. Am I screwed and if not what is my best course to take immediate action? I can answer any questions. Thank you! 

[aztropic]

That's freeze damage! Hopefully not enough to have killed the palms,but you really won't know until you see it pushing new spear frond material out of the center of the palm as it warms up. Nothing you can do to improve the looks of the current fronds, but don't cut them off until they are brown all the way through, as the remaining green is all the plants have left to make food for themselves. When you water the pots, do so THOROUGHLY, then let them dry out. A 'mild' watering that doesn't fully wet the soil in the pot is going to have the roots that never received any water eventually dry up and die.

As you can see, Houston is not going to be a place where foxtails are going to thrive long term. You may be able to get runs of a few years here and there without freezes,but then a cold event like this happens,and you will have to start over with the more tropical palms like foxtails. Temperatures below 29 degrees F will cause the damage you currently see,and it only takes one night reaching this temp to do it. C9 incandescent (not led) Christmas lights wrapped around the crownshft and throughout the fronds will buy you a few degrees of protection, but it's safe to say that most foxtails currently planted out in Houston are already dead after experiencing your 19F temps a few days ago. 🤷‍♂️

 

aztropic 

Mesa, Arizona 

[CobraPalm]

Thanks for the great reply aztropic! Ya I knew going into it that these palms were not ideal for this region especially if we got a cold snap like this. I even had them in the garage which is crazy. Just gotta wait and find out now. That sucks. They were cheap so it’s not a big deal I’ll try to save them but if they die I’ll consider something else in their place. Thank you so much. Should I give them some fertilizer? The one I use is liquid. 

[aztropic]

Avoid using any fertilizer,unless something slow release like osmocote. Too much of a chance to cause even more damage burning the roots now. After planting, a light dose of your liquid fertilizer in June mixed half strength would be ok.

 

aztropic 

Mesa, Arizona 

[Harry’s Palms]

Even here , where temps are mild , Wodyetia are hit and miss. They can be beautiful and very hardy or just die even after years of nice growth. I hope yours pull through  as @aztropic says , time will tell. Harry

[CobraPalm]

Sounds good, I will take all the advice I can get and use it. I really appreciate it yall!!