Find Your Ask the Expert: Indoor Palm Tree
I recently purchased an indoor palm tree (about 6ft now). After about two weeks in my home a few of the leaves are turning yellow. I water it once a week. Can you help? Thanks.
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Yellow leaves are usually a result of water stress or mineral deficiency. Occasionally insect damage can result in yellow leaves. This is true for most plants. With palms water issues are generally the cause if a few of the leaves are turning yellow. Mineral deficiencies will occur in a broader fashion. Insect damage usually present itself with other signs before the leaves turn yellow.
With that said we need to examine the leaves to see if we can pin point the problem. First rule out insects by examining the leaves with a magnifying glass. Look at both the top and the bottom of the leaf. The magnifying glass will help you see the insects. If you have insects spray them with the appropriate insecticide. Your local garden center will have what you need.
Now check for mineral deficiencies. Do you see brown or orange spots on your palm leaves? Is the yellow in a band across the leaf and not from the tip down? This could be a mineral deficiency and will need the proper fertilizer to correct it. Once again your local garden center and nursery can help you.
Now to what I real think the problem is transplant shock and water practices. Did you repot your palm when you brought it home? If so the soil maybe too heavy or may not be draining well. You pot should have drainage hole to allow excess water to drain away from the plant. Palms want a moist but well drained soil. It should never be soggy yet the root ball should be moist throughout not just on the top. Palms also like humidity so misting them can help.
Remember palms in general like bright light but directly in front of a window is not a good place for them. So check you light exposure as well as your water practice.
Above all don’t panic. The yellow leaves could also be a natural reaction to moving. Transplant shock occurs in every plant. Sometimes the plant exhibits signs of transplant shock and other times there will be no sign.
I recommend the wait and see approach. Take care of the palm the way palms like to be taken care of wait at least two weeks before you do anything drastically. The yellowing leaves should start to decrease and the plant should settle into its new home.
I’m not sure what kind of palm you have but reading Caring for Parlor Palms might help.
My palm tree had yellow leaves as well. I think I overwatered it because the roots were very rotted. My soil was dry on the top but it might’ve been still wet on the bottom of the pot. Or it might’ve been from using regular tap water instead of purified water…(i was very new to gardening then).
I am having the exact same problem. I just bought a majestic palm at ikea and the leaves are yellowing. I did transplant it into a new pot, but I thought the problem was that my cat keeps peeing on it, but i’m probably overwatering too. I didn’t know you were supposed to water only once a week?! that seems so counter-intuitive, although I remember hearing somewhere that the leading cause of indoor plant stress is overwatering. Who knew?
I have a palm a it is suddenly sick it has what I can only call webs on the leaves but they aren’t like spider web it’s like cotton candy and then I have little white dots on the some the the leaves.
When I noticed it the my plant was green about a week after the leaves started to colour, i can’t find any bugs,
I don’t think I over water I water it every 2 weeks and have a globe in it.
I have been trimming off the dead leaves hoping for new growth.
Am I doing things wrong or ok. Please let me know.
It sounds like you have spidermites. This insect is very small and can only be seen using a microscope. You will need an insecticide that is rated for houseplants. Fertilome carries a RTU (ready to use) spidermite spray that is safe for houseplants. Spidermites attack plants that are under stress. So if you think your watering practices have been off, you will need to get them under control after you kill the spidermites.
This is a great site!! Thanks to everyone for the tips. I’m sitting here with my palm right by my desk, she’s got some yellow spots with brown centers and I read the first comment to the topic and when you said that about the transplant shock, I would say YES “loudly” as I’m sure she would. It was horrific to watch, seriously, I got her from Home Depot and for some reason, I ALWAYS pick the runts of the litter so to speak, hoping to bring them back to life so she already had problems but this lady was just BRUTAL lol seriously, I had to leave the scene so I didn’t speak my mind lol!! So, I guess I will give her more time to settle in… I just love this plant! It makes me smile every day! :) Blessings to all!
Magnesium…
Several months ago I purchased a rather large Palm and it did have spider mites when I brought it home. I sprayed with a house plant insecticide and have not seen any web like issues since. All of the entire leaves are turning yellow. I water it when the top inch is dry about once a week in the summer and fertilize now and then.
I live in a very humid, warm area but it’s in air conditioning all day. Since it is so humid, will it survive being out on my front porch for the summer? It would be shaded by trees and protected from wind and such.
I appreciate any info anyone can provide,,,,,,,Thanks
Roberta,
You can place your palm outside in a protected area for the summer. Now as for the yellow leaves, make sure you still do not have a spider mite problem. You might have killed the adult spider mites with the insecticide, but there may have been eggs which have now hatched. Use a magnifying glass to check the backside of the leaves. Reapply the insecticide if you see signs of spider mites.
I would also check the container to make sure the excess water has a chance to drain away from the plant. In fact, I would also check to make sure the plant is getting enough water for the whole root ball and not just the upper inch.
Once either of these two issues have been corrected the plant should form new healthy leaves. Good luck and keep me posted.
Hi Jamie, We received a bamboo palm as a gift for our company. We have it in the reception area. The problem is the tips of almost all leaves have “burnt” looking edges. I am seeing new growth, however, even the new growth looks “burnt” on the tips.
I water weekly, and it is receiving light from overhead lights.
Lisa,
It could be the water you are using. If your water has a high concentration of chlorine, it could cause tip burn. Place the water you are going to use in an open container and let the chlorine evaporate for 24 hours before you water the plant.
I would tell you chances are that the pot has poor drainage and its holding to much water. Now if your palm is a Roebelenii palm or Royal Palmthis might not be the case. Since both these palms can handle a bit of wet feet.
My boyfriend has had his palm tree for about 10 years. It has grown to also 13ft. Just recently started to grow flower type things from the top. Never seen this before. What is causing this?
Dawn,
Is it an indoor or outdoor plant? Could you provide a photo?
I have a cat palm. It went from very healthy to sickly over a period of about 6 months. The leaves are now brown. The new shoots are brown tipped even before they open. A lot of the plant’s stems are brown to black. I mist it occasionally for insects and I can see no webs. I water it weekly so that the water comes out of the bottom of the pot. It is out of direct sunlight on my lanai in southwest Florida. Is there any hope?
Dale,
Sounds like you have one very sick plant. To really be able to make a diagnosis, I need a few pictures. Please send me a up-close shot of a browning leaf, a picture of the blackening stem, and a shoot of the soil. You can email me the photo at jadams@flowershopnetwork.com. Also I need to know what you are using as a mist for insects. Hopefully once I have all the facts I will be able to diagnose the issue.
I purchased a beautiful palm tree 2 months ago at Ikea. I left it in its original pot and placed it in a sun-lit room. It was thriving until a couple weeks ago when I noticed a yellow frond. I then increased the watering and included a fertilizer. Three more yellow fronds appeared– all lower, but the 6 longer fronds remain — at the moment– a perfect green.
Have now read the helpful posts above, I removed the plant from the outside pot and found that it was sitting in an inch of water! I also noted that the soil surrounding it was very loose, so that the tree toppled over with soil spilling out!
Can someone kindly advis me please as to best rehab my palm? Should I remove the 4 lower fronds which are yellow> How long should I hold off watering? Do I need to replace the soil which may have excessive fertilizer
Thanks for your kind assistance. I am so hoping it is not too late to save the palm.
I have a palm that I bought from Home Depot. I’ve learned a lot from this thread already about taking care of it but I still have some questions. What would be the best way to re-pot it? What soil would be best and how can I make sure it has enough drainage? 2. I live in FL where it is humid but the plant is indoors in air conditioning. Do I need to compensate for that somehow? 3. I use filtered water from my fridge to water it once a week. Is that water ok or should I use something else? I know this is alot of questions but I love this plant and just don’t want it to die! Thank you so much for your help!
Jean,
Remove all damaged fronds and if top roots are exposed from the soil falling out, replace the soil. Make sure that the plant is now in a container in which excess soil can drain away. Give it a few days and then check the moisture in the soil. If the soil feels dry, water it and make sure any excess water drains away. Your plant should recover in a few weeks. Hope this information helps!
Pamela,
A basic house plant soil will be fine for the palm. Your local garden center nursery should have the right potting mix for you. As for potting, start with a container with drain holes. Then add a little bit of gravel or rock to the bottom. Fill the pot with just enough soil that the top of the root ball of the plant is an inch below the container rim. Place your plant in the container and add soil to fill in around the sides. Do not place any soil on top of the root ball. Water thoroughly and then proceed with normal watering care. Hope this helps!
I have acai palms about 6 inches tall. I just got home from a business trip and noticed leaves are turning orange’ish and tips were brown. I watered and then sprayed leaves with water mist.
Any thoughts? I did lose a couple before die to having them in a container and it stormed while I was away and they sat in water.
Could this be a continuation? They were really dry today. Thanks
Thank you, Rachel, for your rapid and very helpful advice.
Scott,
Are all of the leaves turning brown? A few browning leaves is normal and usually occur on the older leaves. Other browning issues are usually the result of improper watering which cause fungal problems. So if all of the leaves are having issues, you need to check the roots to make sure you do not have a root rot issue. Pop the plant out of the out of the container and look at the roots. If the roots are white or yellowish and firm the roots should be fine. However if the roots are soft or black the problem is root rot. You can trim away any damaged roots and then place the plant back into the pot. The plant should recover provided that proper watering and drainage occur. Hope this information helps.
Thank you. They almost have like brown streaks through the leaves. I took a couple to the nursery and she said she thought maybe cold damage. I bring them inside though when it gets chilly. She didn’t know what an acai was so….
Maybe I will pull one and have a look. Hopefully it won’t hurt it…wife laughs now says I treat them like kids lol
I have a palm that I inherited from my grandma and it was fine when it was at her house I brought it home back in Oct. and it was doing good growing new leaves but then about a week ago it started getting yellow leaves and some of the leaves have brown on them some on the tips but then some have them half way down the leaves. Help please thank you
Lori,
First you need to eliminate all possibilities. Check the plant with a magnifying glass to determine if the issue is caused by insects. If you see insects go to your local garden center and purchase the appropriate insecticide. Check to make sure there are no environmental problems – make sure the air vents are not blowing directly on the plant, make sure the plant is not in a direct light source and most importantly check the the wettness of the soil. Palms like a moist but not soggy soil and need a humid environment. So make sure the excess water can drain away from the plant and be sure to mist the air near the palm with lukewarm water. Hope this information helps.
I bought a Majestic Palm (with 7 big leaves) at Home Depot. It had many dark spots on the lower leaves, and withe/almost transparent little spots on the upper leaves. The guy at HD recommended me not to buy it, but I thought: I’ll take care of it. I brought it home a couple of weeks ago, and the first thing I did was spraying the leaves with Bonide Eight Insect Control. When it dried, I cleaned leaf by leaf with cotton. I didn’t see any insect whatsoever.
I’ve watered it twice in two weeks, and it has been standing by a window (with a white cotton curtain that protects the plant from direct light, but allows some light to come in). The lower leaves are turning yellow very fast (in less than 2 days) and getting a dry texture. The three upper leaves are starting to show darker tones on the ends (brown and yellow). Even a new tall leaf that’s now starting to open seem to have dry ends.
Could anyone help me? I really want to save this beauty ;-)
Bea,
Did the white spots rub off, if they did then an insecticide treatment was the right approach. If not, the problem was probably fungal and would need a fungicide. However, yellowing leaves that turn brown are a sign of a watering issue. Although palms like a moist soil they do not like to have wet feet. Make sure the plant has moist soil, but that excess water can drain away from the plant. If possible, cut off all damaged leaves. Hope this information helps.
I have two mini palms that were right next to eachother other in a succulent bowel set up I won at a benefit for about 7 months that did great. I wanted to change up some stuff in the bowel actually see what the person had for soil in there. After I took the layering of rock off and took the two mini palms and separated them to different sides of the bowel for the time being they started getting crispy like, the leaves and the stems, the soil was poor quality so I moved them to a different pot with better soil and drainage. No sure if I should cut the shoots off towards the base or what to do.
Thanks!
April
April,
Without seeing a picture not sure what you need to do. Send me a picture jadams@flowershopnetwork.com.
I have a majesty palm that sits in the corner of my living room that is having some issues lately. I bought it a couple months ago and it’s been doing fabulously up until a few days ago when I noticed an entire frond has turned yellow and it just appears a bit “skinny”. It is in direct sunlight from a nearby window and I have cats that I have to shoo away from chewing the ends quite often. I think I may be overwatering right now, but I wanted to be sure it wasn’t something else. If it is a case of overwatering (I’ve been home more often so I’ve been watering closer to every 2-3 days rather than every 5-7) do you think I could put it outside for a day or two to help dry it out?
Paige,
Check for spider mites on the yellow frond. If you don’t see any then over watering maybe the issue.
No spider mites! I really just think I got a bit overzealous with my watering lately. Would it better to remove the yellow/dead fronds and maybe place it outside to try to dry it out some or should I just leave it be? I don’t want to damage it further.
Paige,
I would remove the yellow frond and leave it where it is at.
I just moved into a loft with 20ft ceilings back in May. I bought a 8ft majesty palm from Home Depot but the leaves started to turn yellow then brown within two weeks. I thought it was due to plant transplant and the fertilizer spikes they sold me at the time of purchase which were for outdoor palms. With that said , the palm eventually died by Aug frond by reins. So in late August I purchased another large Palm from a nursery. This one is about 9 ft tall and very healthy. Sadly about two weeks later one of the fronds started to turn yellow then would turn brown within a week then shrivel up and stay very hard. So I cut it off and then it spread to the next lower frond. This time around I am only watering once a week, kept it in the original pot, and have inspected thoroughly for spider mites with no avail. It’s about 10ft away from my 17ft windows so it gets plenty of sun light but not close enough to burn. Lastly there is the central air unit about 8 ft above the plant. However the ducts do not blow onto the plant. Is it my loft or possible mineral deficiency?
Hi, Jamie,
I have a Golden Palm kept inside with good but indirect light. Plenty of new fronds appearing (Spring in Sydney, Australia) at he moment. A few white almost microscopic white spots on several emerging stems.
Existing stems have always had equally microscopic black spots which can be removed with a finger nail.
Most leaves on the fronds have small circular yellow spots. leaves all have brown tips but minor problem.
In the past two weeks two semi-juvenile leaves died off. Don’y think I have beasties in the palm. About to soak the soil again (last time 1 year ago) and let the water drain our of the pot and saucer. Can send photographs of the various minor afflictions. Do I have anything to worry about? Palm is 3 feet tall from soil level to the top of the biggest frond
David,
Your Golden Palm might have scale. If it’s scale, the palm leaves will eventually be covered in a sticky substance. Palm leaves scale are very small and damage the damage the palm tree by inserting a straw-like appendage into the palm tree and sucking the fluids out. Treatment for palm scale is to repeatedly spray the palm tree leaves with horticultural oil or a mixture of equal parts rubbing alcohol and water mixed with some bleach-free dish soap. I would wait a few days and see if you notice an increase in the small white spots. If there is, I would start the removal treatment as soon as possible. If caught early, scale insects can be rubbed off by hand, with a discarded toothbrush, or with a cotton swab soaked in isopropyl alcohol. Prune out heavily infested portions of the plant. Monitor the plant frequently. Under watering or cold air might be the cause of yellowing leaves and brown leaf tips. Hope this information helps!
Hello, Rachel,
Thanks for the reply – will follow your advice
David
My husband brought all of the palm plants into the house since it is getting cold here in New York. I noticed that one of them has beige spots all over the leaves. Could that be a potassium deficiency?
Eileen,
Are all of the leaves turning beige/yellow? A few yellow/brown leaves is normal and usually occur on the older leaves. Other browning issues are usually the result of improper watering which cause fungal problems. So if all of the leaves are having issues, you need to check the roots to make sure you do not have a root rot issue. Pop the plant out of the out of the container and look at the roots. If the roots are white or yellowish and firm the roots should be fine. However if the roots are soft or black the problem is root rot. You can trim away any damaged roots and then place the plant back into the pot. The plant should recover provided that proper watering and drainage occur. Hope this information helps.
I have owned an indoor Palm for about 14 months and it’s been great. We purchased it from Home Depot and kept it in its original pot but placed that into a decorative pot with drainage. I honestly water like 1 a month. After reading this thread I was thinking maybe it wasn’t enough until I dug my finger into the soil and the soil is still damp. About 3 months ago 1 of the three palms got sick and the leaves started to turn yellow and fell off on their own. This happened with a few a day. I had no idea what to do and in fact that Palm died and the trunk of it almost feels like it lost the inside strength it once had. The other two in the same pot are fine however. Until just this week I am noticing the same yellowing happening to another 1 of the 2 palms trees and the leaves are also falling off by themselves (not sure if that sounds funny). The trunk however still is strong and the other leaves on it look green and good at this point. I could be overly cautious because I watched the other one die. I am still not even sure what to do with the dead trunk. I do not have a green thumb which is why I chose an easily maintained plant but I am at a point where I am not sure what is going on, if anything. Any suggestions? I also pulled the plant out to see if it too were sitting in water inside the outer pot and it is not! Am I not watering enough if the soil is still damp when I stick my finger about 1″ down?
Tamara,
You may need to check your roots and make sure your palms aren’t experiencing root rot. You also want to make sure that the entire root ball is getting enough water, and not just that top layer. You should not water until you stick your finger in the soil about an inch and it feels dry.
A mineral deficiency can also cause leaves to yellow. Do the leaves yellow from the tip down, or does a yellow band form across the leaf first?
Thank you, Jamie Woods. Sorry for my delay in response.
The leaves begin to yellow at the tips of the fronds first. Fortunately, there is usually a new shoot coming forth so that I stay even.
New growth is always a great sign! You may want to check your plant with a magnifying glass for insects. Also, make sure there is not an air vent blowing directly on your palm, and that it is in bright, indirect light. You may try misting it with a spray bottle as well to increase the humidity around your palm.
Hi,
I have Ravenala madagascariensis palm it’s leaves are curling and have small spot like wrinkle half of leaves is good and other side is effected.
Can any one have any idea how to get ride of this problem…?
Hello,
It sounds like your palm might have leaf spot or blight. I would take one of the leaves to your local nursery or garden center and see if they can help identify the problem more accurately.
Hello my new indoor palm has been in our place for two weeks and appears to have one to two yellow leaves a day. I’ve been water once ever 1.5 weeks, the pot has no drainage and I have been misting once every 2-3 days. We recently had a croton die and I found mite webs on it. Could mites have transferred from another room or is this a watering issue? Lost two full leaves today – completely yellow and I pulled them off.
David,
Check your palm to make sure it is not a mite issue, but it sounds like it may be a water issue combined with shock from the plant adjusting to its new home. If the pot does not have drainage, you may need to move it to another pot that does have good drainage. It may be holding water in the bottom of the pot.
Hi,
I have several alma indoors. Fishtail, both clumping and single trunk species, triangle palms, washingtonians, royals as well as queen, king, and kentiopsis. Alot of palms, almost out of room. Can send pics if interested. My problem seems to be with the high plateau mountain coconuts,(beccariophenix alfredii) these are from seed. 6 growing in total. Anyway now they seem to be growing more of a yellow leaf (new fronds are yellow). Difficult to find much info as these are relatively new to the gardening world. They do continue to grow, just not sure what the problem may be. Tonight I am going to try unflavored gelatin as this much is almost pure nitrogen as a plant food. Tried a weak mix of Epsom but that showed no result. Any suggestion would be great.
Hey Mark,
As you said, this species of palm is relatively new and I am unfamiliar with them. However, from what I can find, they are a hardy species and tend to be fairly resilient. Usually yellowing of the leaves is caused by insects, poor water practices, a mineral deficiency, or too much light. I would approach each of these things individually to attempt to correct whichever one is the problem. Also, remember that it can take a couple of weeks to see the results, so give your plant time to recover. Good luck and let us know how it goes!