Apparently, nobody is going to sit back and watch his/her ornamental tree die off when there's actually something to do to revive it, which is why we're going to show you how to revive a dying palm tree.
In particular, palm trees require serious care and nurturing to stay healthy and fresh at all times. In this article, we will also look at how to save a dying queen palm tree and how to revive a dying potted palm tree.
Before you start looking out for solutions on how to save your palm tree from dying, it is best to know what’s affecting the tree’s healthiness.
Could it be lack of proper care, overwatered soil, climate change, or lack of nutrients? When you know this, it becomes easier to tackle the issue.
Table of Contents
Why Is My Palm Tree Dying Off?
There are basically so many things that can kill a palm tree over time, including:
- Overwatered soil
- Climate
- Insects
- Lack of nutrients
- Fungal diseases
- Etc.
When your queen palm starts dying off, you'd notice that the fronds turn blackish.
If you allow the situation to go on without acting - the entire leaves would gradually turn black, and at this point, the tree cannot be revived - it’s already dead.
But you won’t let it get to that extent, right? Hence, here are the tips to revive your dying palm tree.
How To Revive a Dying Palm Tree
1. Switch To A High-Quality Fertilizer
Yea, maybe the fertilizer you’re currently using is not good enough for your palm trees. Hence, you should consider switcher to a higher-quality fertilizer so that your palm trees can get enough nutrients to grow fine and beautiful.
In addition, it is imperative to say that you should not apply fertilizer directly to the tree’s root; you should give at least 2-inch space away from the root, then you can apply the fertilizer there.
2. Add Water
Always water your palm trees but don't do it in excess so you don't overwater the plant. Overwatering is bad for a palm tree and would cause it to die gradually.
You may need to use a soil meter to determine the level of water in the soil where your palm tree is planted.
3. Cut Off Dead Fronds
Don't be quick in doing this; if you normalize cutting off fronds that look to be fading away, you may end up depriving the palm tree of sufficient nutrients, which can make it die off faster.
That said, you should only cut of fronts that are dead.
4. Use Fungicide
Since fungi and other insects could be the contributing factors to your dying palm tree; it is advisable to apply some fungicide at the center of the plant and let it stay there for some months.
If your palm tree plant is not dead yet, over time, it would shed the dead fronds and breed new ones.
How To Save A Dying Queen Palm Tree
These practices can help to revive a dying queen palm. They are not foolproof but have been tried by other people and the result was pretty good, as expected.
1. Remove Insects or Pests
Check the tree to see if insects are eating up some part of it. If you found some, remove them immediately and apply necessary measures to stop the pests/insects from coming back to your ornamental tree.
2. Reduce Watering
It is not arguable that plants need water to grow - so, your queen palm also needs water to grow. But when you water it more than required, it could cause the tree to start dying off gradually.
That said, if overwatering is the reason why your queen palm isn’t looking good as usual, then you should cut down on watering.
Generally, palm trees need less water in winter and more in summer.
3. Pause Using Fertilizers
As awkward as it may sound, when your queen palm is not performing well, it is advisable to stop using fertilizer for a while and check what happens.
This tip had worked for some gardeners, hopefully, it'd work for you, too.
4. Use The Recommended Soil
Queen palms grow perfectly on fertile, well-drained soil. They don’t do well in high pH (alkaline) soil, or poorly-drained soil.
Also, queen palm trees require soil that is rich in micronutrients. So, you need to crosscheck the soil where you planted the tree(s) to see it is actually the best you should have used.
5. Check For Sunlight
New queen palms can be affected badly if planted under direct sunlight - they could get sunburned. In contrast, if planted in a shed, where there’s not enough sunlight, the leaves will turn brownish, which is a sign of gradual death.
So, you need to figure out if your tree is getting excessive sunlight or not getting enough. It could either need more light or less light.
6. Check For Nutrients
When your queen palm is not getting enough micronutrients from the soil, it would gradually start dying off.
However, you can solve this problem by adding high-quality fertilizer to boost the nutrients supply to your palm tree.
How To Revive a Dying Potted Palm Tree
Palm trees add beauty to an environment; whether there are planted indoor or outdoor. Potted palm trees need adequate attention and nutrients to grow well.
You may need to introduce more light in the bid to revive your potted palm tree when it's growing worse.
1. Ensure You Planted In A Good Soil
Generally, palm trees - whether queen palms, potted palms, or normal palm trees - require soil that is rich in macronutrients.
Well, every plant needs nutrients to grow, but palm trees, particularly, seem to need richer soils.
So, you should check if you planted with the right soil - that’s the first thing to check if your potted palm tree isn’t growing well as expected.
2. Stop Moving The Pot Around
Palm trees do adapt to the conditions of where they were initially planted; hence, moving them from one place to another – probably because it's potted and you can move the pot around - can cause the tree to start dying gradually, one frond at a time because it'd strive to adapt to each new environment you move it to.
3. Control Sunlight and Watering
If your potted palm tree is getting enough early morning sun and late evening rays; that’s pretty enough for it. But if not, you may need to move it to a position where it could get such sunlight rays.
The same applies to watering; your plant needs enough water to grow but doesn't make it much.
Overwatering remains one of the commonest causes of dying palm trees. Don't let the soil get soggy, but it should be moist at all times.
4. Cautiously Apply Fertilizer
Not all fertilizers are good for potted palm trees; you need the best quality fertilizer in the market.
Also, when applying the fertilizer, try not to apply it close to the roots. At least, fertilizer should be applied at least 2-inch away from the tree's root.
5. Remove Pests and Insects
Although the palm tree is planted indoor, inside your house, or in the office, pests and insects can get to it.
When this happens, the tree would start losing nutrients to those pests and insects, which could result in poor growth until it gradually dies off.
Final Thoughts
Hopefully, this article has shown you how to revive a dying palm tree, a queen palm tree, also a potted palm tree.
The tips explained can be carried out to restore any dying palm tree back to life - planted indoor or outdoor.
