Tuesday, May. 26, 2009

Palms offer a tropical touch

If you are looking to add a tropical feature to your landscape, healthy palms can be a beautiful and long-lived part of our not-so-tropical Grand Strand gardens.

Select cold hardy palms that are suited to our climate. The following varieties are all proven successful along the Grand Strand.

Following is a brief description. The mature height (in feet) and the temperature at which cold damage occurs are noted after each palm:

Needle Palm (Rhapidophyllum hystrix), tall mounding shrubby habit, 10, 0.

Dwarf Palmetto (Sabel minor), shrubby habit, 7, 0.

Louisiana Palmetto (Sabel minor 'Louisiana'), shrubby habit that eventually forms a squat trunk, 10-12, 0.

Saw Palmetto (Serenoa repens), shrubby habit, 5-10, 0.

Windmill or Chusan Palm (Trachycarpus fortunei), tree form with a slender trunk, 20-30, 5.

Scrub Palm (Sabal etonia), shrubby habit but sometimes forms a trunk, 5-7, 5.

Mediterranean Fan Palm (Chamaerops humilis), clumping palm that forms trunks, 10-20, 5.

Palmetto or Cabbage Palm (Sabal palmetto), tree form with stout trunk, 30-40, 10.

Jelly or Pindo Palm (Butia capitata) tree form with stout trunk, 15-20, 12.

California Fan Palm (Washingtonia filifera), tree form with stout trunk, 40, 15.

Plant palms during warm weather (not fall or winter) in a sunny well drained location that is protected from winter winds. Avoid low areas where water may pool from rain or irrigation.

Dig a hole wide enough for the root ball to fit in easily, but no deeper than the root ball. Create a small berm around the root ball to prevent water from running off.

Do not augment or top dress the soil with compost when planting your palm.

Mulch under the canopy.

Keep your palm well watered during the first 4-6 months, especially during drought. However, the soil should not be kept wet or allowed to become soggy.

Fertilize the root ball area with palm fertilizer 3 months after planting.

Do not expect palms to develop a lot of top growth during the first year.

Palms are highly susceptible to nutrient deficiencies, so it is essential to fertilize them properly. Use a fertilizer formulated specifically for palms. Palms need a specific ratio of major nutrients as well as micro nutrients that are not typically included in other fertilizers. Broadcast fertilizer evenly under the canopy 4-6 times during the growing season, less often during a drought. Do not apply turf fertilizer around your palm.

Remove old leaves only when they are completely dead. The green part of leaves provides potassium for new growth. It is OK to snip off the brown parts of older fronds, but leave the green until it turns brown.

Palms are easy to properly select, plant and maintain, but take fair warning. Let your landscaper or nurseryman deliver and plant mature trees. Even in dormancy their trunks may be exceptionally heavy with stored water.