Unhappy Licuala Spinosa

[rttunc]

I love this species but this specimen doesn’t seem to love me anymore.   I have read conflicting reports on sun exposure - some say more, some say less.  I have tried both.  The fronds that emerge are very yellow and sickly looking.   Any suggestions, growing tips, etc?   I’m in south Florida, and it’s watered and fertilized well.  It is in a pot, though, albeit a very large one!

Any tips would be appreciated!   

[Merlyn]

@rttunc pictures would help!  If the new fronds are growing out pale yellow to white, it may be an iron deficiency.  Sometimes that's caused by root rot.  I had Spinosa in pots for a couple of years, and planted several in the ground recently.  They seem ok with *almost* full sun in the Orlando swamp (some PM shade) and actually seem happier there than in full shade.  But it's only been ~5 months in the ground, so it's hard to guess what will happen long-term.

[Fusca]

Agree, photos will be helpful.  I bought this Licuala spinosa this past June and noticed some yellowing also but on the older fronds only.  New growth has been healthy and green.  I was a little concerned because of the higher pH soil where it's planted but the grower keeps his palms in a shadehouse so the yellowing of mine is likely due to transition from the shadehouse to full sun exposure.

[rttunc]

Here’s the photo.  I’m wondering about root rot as we had an oddly dry summer in south Florida.  I tried too keep it watered, but might have overdone it.  

[happypalms]

Your palm needs a good feed. Liquid fertiliser fish emulsion or seaweed extract. Remember a little goes a long way. A licuala you could leave in a tray of water all summer they drink a lot. 

[Merlyn]

@rttunc I'd guess iron deficiency, just because pretty much all of the fronds are pale green to white.  Here's my notes on deficiencies and their visible effects:

• Nitrogen - Older fronds turn light green uniformly, new fronds remain dark green until deficiency is really severe
• Potassium - Older fronds get translucent yellow/orange or dead spots on leaves, especially at the tips. Caryota and Arenga get random splotched dead spots in leaves. Sometimes tips are curled or frizzled. Always starts at tips of oldest leaves, moving upwards
• Magnesium -Yellow ends on oldest leaves first, transitions to solid green at the base of each leaf.  Does not cause leaf tip necrosis until really severe.
• Iron - Many times caused by overly mucky soil and root rot. Starts with new spear leaves with yellow-green or even white, possibly with spots of green. EDDHA works up to pH of 9, 3-5oz per 100sqft
• Manganese - Lengthwise necrotic streaks in NEW leaves with dead and curled leaf tips.  Similar to bands showing Magnesium deficiency.  Mn is NOT mobile, so it can't be stolen from old leaves.
• Boron - Bent or necrotic or distorted leaf tips, distorted or bent spear, bands of dead spots on new fans, spears that won't fully open, stunted fronds
• Water - Underwatering brown at the edges first, later followed by yellowing of the whole leaf. Overwatering can be drooping fronds turning yellowish and losing color
• Calcium – New leaves are stunted and necrotic, eventually growing only petiole stubs.  Deficiency is rare.  High pH from adding calcium can induce Magnesium, Manganese, Iron and Boron deficiencies.
• Dolomitic Lime or Azomite - Magnesium Carbonate – reduces acidity/raises pH – slower release and adds Magnesium, helps avoid Potassium deficiencies in Cuban Copernicias. 5Lb per palm on full-size Copernicias and a bit less on Kentiopsis Oliviformis
• Garden Lime - Calcium Carbonate – fast release but works well. 5Lb per palm on full-size Copernicias and a bit less on Kentiopsis Oliviformis
• Sulfur - Elemental sulfur powder or prills reduces pH, 1/2 ounce per cubic foot in sandy soils
• Sunburn - Orange/Red/Brown streaks on surfaces facing the point of hottest sun, typically the worst case is around 1-4pm.  Sun tolerant species will adapt and grow out of it. Shade loving species may never adapt.

The fact that it's still growing is good news, so maybe a foliar spray of iron and some fertilizer with EDDHA may help.  I've used Palm Nutritional Spray from Southern Ag for foliar iron.  Just beware that it'll stain concrete, so you might want to put the pot somewhere else before trying it. 

The blotchy light green/yellow could also be a nitrogen deficiency, depending on how it progressed.  In my above notes, usually it's light green on the oldest leaves first, then progressing to new growth.  If the pale color *started* with the new fronds, it's probably overwatering/iron/root rot.

What are you doing for fertilizer, and what is the soil mix in the pot?  Licuala can usually tolerate lots of water, and grow anywhere from grasslands to swamps.  

[rttunc]

@MerlynTHANK YOU!  This is extremely helpful and I will hold onto for my other specimens as well!   

[rttunc]

Thanks @happypalmsmy father swears by fish fertilizer so I think it’s time I give it a try!  

[rttunc]

@Merlyn Soil is potting mix with vermiculite.  For fertilizer I usually use a pellet actually intended for fruits and veggies as I have quite a few citrus and just get one fertilizer.  I’m going to give the fish fertilizer a try and see if that helps.  

[Merlyn]

17 minutes ago, rttunc said:

@Merlyn Soil is potting mix with vermiculite.  For fertilizer I usually use a pellet actually intended for fruits and veggies as I have quite a few citrus and just get one fertilizer.  I’m going to give the fish fertilizer a try and see if that helps.  

For palms and cycads my potting mix is generally about 50% organic/50% inorganic.  Most "potting mixes" have a tendency to turn to sludgy muck after a few years...or faster.  If you ask on here you'll probably find 100 different recipes for mix.  These days I tend to use a mix of:

• Generic "topsoil" bags - I pick the lightweight ones because they are coarse shredded tree bits.  Heavy bags tend to be lots of sand and very fine particles
• Turface MVP - good aeration and way better than perlite or vermiculite, but much heavier.  I used perlite when it was available cheap in the big bags from HD.  I get Turface at the local Ewing Irrigation.
• Small pine bark mulch - smallish chunks keep the pots fairly loose
• Shredded cypress mulch - a handful or two in a 5g pot helps loosen up the soil.  It doesn't rot, so it'll never compact into muck

There's a bunch of threads on potting mixes in the "Palms in pots" section of the forum.  Here's two good ones:

https://www.palmtalk.org/forum/topic/48442-your-soil-mix-tell-us/

https://www.palmtalk.org/forum/topic/54163-the-soil-mixes-the-pros-use/

[rttunc]

This is wonderful!  Thank you so much!!!