Chrysalidiocarpus Decarii leaf bases

[Harry’s Palms]

Hello fellow PT folks. For those of us that have Triangle palms , we know how the leaf bases can hang on for years. I haven’t been able to find a way to cut them without threatening damage to the trunk. They will eventually come off with a hard tug but only after a while. I don’t mind the rugged look but I have one out front that had a couple of years of bases stacked up. The rain finally stopped yesterday and now we have brisk, windy conditions and getting time in the garden. I looked up at the Triangle palm and just gave a tug , wow I got about six bases to just pull off . They were water soaked and came off easily exposing about 6” of more trunk. Harry

This was during the rain with stacks of leaf bases 

After finishing the clean up

Close up! Harry

Edited November 22, 2025 by Harry’s Palms
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[realarch]

Harry, that one has some size to it. 

Triangles here in Hilo have a limited life span because of the constant moisture accumulation in the leaf bases. The palms actually look pretty good but then the crown just snaps off because of the rot. A bunch of headless horsemen hanging out.

Tim 

[Harry’s Palms]

I guess they like a more arid climate . Most of the year is pretty dry here . I have a couple that I grew from babies about 25 years ago , maybe more . 
I recall seeing some large ones in pots around the hotel in Maui. Harry

[Stevetoad]

18 hours ago, realarch said:

Harry, that one has some size to it. 

Triangles here in Hilo have a limited life span because of the constant moisture accumulation in the leaf bases. The palms actually look pretty good but then the crown just snaps off because of the rot. A bunch of headless horsemen hanging out.

Tim 

Ahhh! Thank you for clearing this up. Whenever I’m back in Hawaii noticed how a lot of triangles seem to get about 4-6 feet of clear trunk and then start going downhill. Didn’t make sense that it would be an illness or bug attacking just that species.