Date fruit
Palm family. Beautiful representatives of this family are the best representatives of decorative foliage plants for growing indoors, although the best place for a palm tree is in the winter garden. The homeland of most palm trees is the tropics and subtropics. In their homeland, palm trees grow to enormous sizes, for example, leaves can reach 15-17 m in length and 2 m in width. However, many of the palm trees turned out to be quite unpretentious, and their fairly slow growth allows them to be successfully grown in city apartments.
There are several types of so-called house palms - they can be grown as indoor plants. Conventionally, according to the shape of the leaves, they can be divided into two groups:
- pinnately (dipsis, coconut, date, howea, chamedorea)
- fanfolia (Kariota, Chamerops, Trachycarpus, Livistona).
What types of indoor palm trees are there?
An indoor palm tree is expensive today, so purchasing it remains only a dream for many lovers of ornamental vegetation. Adult specimens of the crop grown in a nursery will decorate any home. However, you should remember that buying a mature plant is very risky. Changing growing conditions is detrimental to the crop and often provokes the development of serious diseases or death of the palm tree.
Therefore, when choosing indoor palm plants in the nursery, give preference to small young shoots that have only a minimal crown of leaves. It is these specimens that more easily adapt to other cultivation conditions and care techniques. Do not be alarmed if there is no green mass on the stem of the crop. It builds up after some time.
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The leaves of the palm tree are its most spectacular part. They are characterized by a spectacular shape and appearance that immediately catches the eye. The shape of the foliage is determined by the crop variety. The leaf plates can be straight, narrowed, or even in the form of a semicircle. It is impossible to cut leaf blades from a palm tree, as this may cause the crop to completely die.
Have you not yet decided which type of palm tree to choose for your apartment or house? We bring to your attention varieties of ornamental plants that are in high demand in the floriculture community.
Often asked
When is the best time to apply foliar feeding?
This type of fertilizer is always applied in the morning. Especially if sunlight falls on the palm tree most of the time. Otherwise, you can easily burn the leaves.
Can I use only natural home remedies to fertilize my indoor palm tree?
In this case, the plant may not receive enough of some important microelements. Therefore, it is impossible to do without high-quality preparations, the composition of which is intended for fertilizing palm trees. But these two types of fertilizers can be alternated or even combined.
How to properly apply fertilizers to the soil?
The soil must be pre-moistened. Therefore, first the palm tree is watered with settled water, and only then with fertilizing. Otherwise, there may be a burn to the root system.
Bamboo palm - care at home
The bamboo palm is of interest to many gardeners. The original name fully corresponds to the spectacular appearance of the culture. Externally, the leaves of the plant are similar to bamboo. Actually, that’s why this name of indoor palm tree was chosen for this variety of specimens.
Flower growers love the plant because it grows quickly and does not require special care. It just needs to be watered abundantly and regularly. There are 5 varietal types of bamboo palms. Their detailed description is given below.
Organic fertilizers
To compensate for nutrients, it is not at all necessary to use toxic mineral supplements. Fertilizers of organic origin are also suitable for these purposes. The most effective of them will be discussed below.
Wood ash
Rich in potassium, phosphorus and a number of microelements, wood ash is perfect for the tropical plant in question. The method for preparing the solution is simple: dilute 1 tablespoon of crushed ash in a liter of water. The solution is used as root feeding during active growth, every 1–1.5 weeks.
Dry yeast
Regular baker's yeast, which can be purchased at any supermarket, will bring a weakened plant back to life. Dilute 1 tbsp. l. dry yeast in 1 liter of water and let the solution brew for 60 minutes. Before use, the resulting composition must be diluted with water in a ratio of 1:5.
Potato starch
The mechanism of action of starch is similar to yeast. This homemade fertilizer does not require special preparation: just cool the water left after boiling potatoes and use it for watering.
Fruit peel
Using exotic fruit peels will help bring a wilting plant back to life. To prepare the composition, the peel of banana and citrus fruit needs to be crushed, add 1 tbsp. l. sugar and add 3 liters of water. The resulting composition should be placed in a dark place for 21 days, then diluted with water in a ratio of 1 to 20 and used no more than once a month.
Finger dates
The palmate date (another name is the date palm) grows in the wild and has a remarkable appearance. It can be successfully cultivated in ordinary apartment conditions. Domestic specimens of the plant are practically no different from their wild counterparts, except for their smaller size. A palm tree of this variety grows up to 2 m at home. To make the crop more compact, trim its top in a timely manner.
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Maintain air humidity
Air humidity is a critical condition for the normal preservation of palm leaves during the winter. It’s already difficult for palm trees to adapt to all the disadvantages of winter maintenance. And very dry air at this time of year leads to the appearance of dry tips and yellow spots on luxurious fronds, not to mention the accelerated drying of old leaves.
Spraying is the best method of preventing the loss of decorativeness of a palm tree. Winter spraying is carried out if necessary, even for palm trees that winter in cool conditions - carefully, with warm water, sometimes spraying instead of watering.
Neanta
Neanta palms are also of interest to lovers of ornamental plants. It is better to buy the crop in a flower shop or nursery when it is still in the small sprout stage. As soon as you move it into the house, immediately transplant the culture into a large container. Next, the main task of the grower becomes to provide a favorable microclimate for the development of Neanta.
A luxurious plant with an extensive foliage crown will decorate your room in a couple of years. Until this moment, the indoor Neanta palm tree requires plenty of moisture and good lighting. If all care conditions are met, the crop will bloom with beautiful yellow flowers at the top, which will later be replaced by berry fruits.
Weddel Coconut
The Weddel coconut palm grows well indoors. True, its appearance will be spectacular and catchy only if the most suitable conditions are created. Palm trees of this variety grow well in the presence of high-quality lighting, optimal temperature conditions, daily watering and suitable humidity conditions.
The decorative palm is an indoor flower that needs to be properly cared for. If all care requirements are met, the exotic culture will delight you with a luxurious appearance.
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Causes of foliage damage and methods of treatment
Washingtonia palm - home care
The pride of every palm tree is its foliage. Therefore, when the appearance of the greenery deteriorates, housewives begin to analyze the situation in search of an answer to the question of why the leaves of the palm tree begin to turn yellow.
The leaves are turning yellow
There is a biological reason that has nothing to do with disease or improper care - old leaves dry out and die, and new ones grow at the same time. This is a natural process. To maintain an attractive appearance, you can trim off a yellowing specimen.
Yellowing and drying of leaf tips
When yellow tips begin to appear on a large number of leaves, it is worth looking for the cause in the conditions under which the plant is kept. Caring for a palm tree at home should ensure that there are no drafts.
Novice gardeners often overwater tropical beauties because they are afraid of the soil drying out. Palm roots really love moisture, but at the same time they are afraid of waterlogging, so at the first appearance of yellowed tips of the foliage, you should analyze the watering regime.
Dry and trapped indoor air can ruin palm leaves. In the absence of a humidifier, it is necessary to frequently spray the foliage with soft water. Once a week, if possible, you can bathe the plant, wiping it from dust deposits that interfere with breathing.
White coating on leaves
The most common and safest reason for the appearance of white plaque on leaves is the use of hard water. Moisture from the surface evaporates, and lime or salt deposits remain and clog the pores of the plant, worsening its condition. If hard water flows in the water supply, it must be allowed to settle before watering and spraying palm trees. You will have to have a separate bucket in which there will always be tap water, from which chlorine will evaporate and impurities will settle to the bottom.
White plaque from fungus
The second reason for the appearance of white plaque on a palm tree is a fungal infection. It develops when there is excess moisture in the air, that is, when the room is cool and damp. In order to prevent infection with fungus, palm trees are not sprayed during the off-season.
Additional Information. You can get rid of an existing infection by treating with fungicides and trimming infected leaves.
How to water a palm tree at home
Watering requirements for indoor palm trees are determined according to the time of year. Stagnation of liquid in the soil has a bad effect on the condition of the crop. Therefore, it is better to prevent such a problem from occurring. Set up a high-quality drainage system in the flower pot where the palm tree grows. For this purpose, place a layer of large expanded clay or crushed stone on the bottom of the container. In summer and hot weather, water the crop daily and abundantly. In winter, water moderately. Make sure that in winter the soil in the pot is always moist, but not wet.
Temperature
Indoor palms do not cope well with drafts and heat. Therefore, choose the optimal place in your home for cultivating an exotic crop. In summer, in the room where the plant is located, the temperature should not exceed 16 ºC. In winter, it is advisable to maintain the temperature at +10 ºC, preventing the thermometer from dropping below this mark.
Air humidity
In order for palm trees to grow well and fully develop, they must be kept in conditions of high humidity. Place a container filled with water next to the crop. You can do it differently by spraying the leaves of the plant with a spray bottle. In addition, try to periodically wipe the palm foliage with a damp sponge.
Lighting
The palm grows well in a small amount of diffused lighting. It is better to place it in light partial shade and create good protection from the direct rays of the daytime sun.
You can find out more in the Indoor Plants section of the website.”
What to choose: pot or tub
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It is preferable to take a pot for a palm tree, as for other plants, from natural materials. Such a container will allow the roots to breathe and will not create conditions for rot to occur.
Additional Information. If you have already purchased a pot and it is plastic, you should not get rid of it, because you can transplant a palm tree into it. In this case, you will have to regularly loosen the soil, providing air exchange for the roots, in order to avoid encounters with the fungus.
A large wooden tub is perfect for an adult plant; you can plant a perennial palm tree in it, which is cramped in its previous place. However, transplantation of young plants should take place in containers corresponding to the size of the root system.
Having a palm tree in your room is not only beautiful, but also useful. It perfectly renews the composition of the air, enriching it with oxygen; its appearance reminds of relaxation and complete absence of worries. Some types of bush-like palms can be planted in several pots and get a tropical forest, which will give the interior a fresh look and inform the owners with its appearance if the air in the room begins to dry out.
