HELP!! My Palm is SAD...

[akilby1]

I absolutely LOVE my palm that i got about 6 months ago. I got it at a home improvement store, untagged, so I was clueless as to what kind it was/is. I just liked the appearance. Anyway, I planted it, and it has been doing so well, up until about 2 weeks ago. I live on the Southeast Coast in North Carolina, and we have had some unseasonable weather this winter, with temps dropping below 20 a few nights, but a lot of 20-32 degree overnight lows. We even had some freezing rain and snow the day after Christmas. I have 2 European Fan Palms that are thriving despite the weather, and I love them. All 3 palms have been fertilized with palm tree "food", and watered in the colder months, only when we have gone through spells of no rain.

I would like to know if someone could identify the palm in the pics. The first one is a pic I took the day I bought it, the second is a pic of how it looked just about a month ago on Thanksgiving day. The ones following are of how it looks today, and, as much as I think that it's already gone, I don't want to lose this tree. If anyone could help me, I'd appreciate it!

[SurfCityPalms]

The tree is either a Mexican Fan Palm or a California Fan Palm; you can't really tell them apart until they start trunking. Both trees are VERY hardy trees and can take some pretty cold temps. The Mexican fan is hardy to about 20F and the California fan to about 10F.

I can see it looks pretty bad but I have seen those trees have all of their leaves turn brown and still recover by sprouting new green leaves months later, I'll say it again, they are VERY hardy trees. So water it as normal, not too much, it is a drought tollerent tree as it does well at my local desert resorts.

Let me know how it does, they grow like weeds where I live and I'm constantly pulling them out when weeding, I would be glad to send you some seedlings or seeds if you would like.

Good luck! Let me know how it goes.

[akilby1]

Thank you so much for your post! It was encouraging. I would love some seeds and/or seedlings. My husband got me a little greenhouse for Christmas, and although it's not up yet, I'm itching to get started. I'm a beginner gardener, as I just purchased my first home last summer, but I have an infinite affection towards Palms and tropical/exotic plants and flowers. My vision for my backyard is a tranquil, tropical oasis. It's a work in progress, but I know that knowledge is key in keeping up these types of plants and trees. Any advice or tips you'd like to pass on would be great!

Again, thank you again for your post, and I will keep you up to date on the health of my palm.

[akilby1]

OH!! and would you be able to tell me about how old how old this tree is? It's between 4 and 5 feet tall.

[SurfCityPalms]

Where I live that tree would be about 3-4 years old, and would start to trunk in another year or two. Im sure in a green house that stayed warm all year long it would be younger than that, but that guess is based on my local outdoor growing conditions.

Send me your address in a private message and I will go outside and find you some of those trees/seeds. It has been raining for a few days, but I will give it by best shot.

[SurfCityPalms]

I just walked my yard and got you about a dozen seeds, 1/2 a dozen seedlings, and one small tree that would be considered to be a "1 gallon" size. They might not all make it because they were pulled from the ground and not grown for resell, but I'm sure a few will survive. Even if they turn brown do not give up on them. Wait for them to rott, where they can be removed with a light tug on the tree, or they fall over on their own. This is a hardy tree and will surprise you.

As for the seeds; keep them constantly warm and moist and they should sprout in a month or two.

Also, these are the Mexican Fan Palms not the California fans, so they're hardy to about 20F.

I WANT TO MAKE SURE TO SAY THIS; these trees are not trees what I normally grow to sell, they are what I normally pull out of my yard as weeds, I only got these for you so they are not going look like the normal quality tree that I sell. So if you ever want other trees from me I GUARENTEE they will look much nices than these.