When, how and why?

When is it allowed to cut?

The unique spatial effect of palm trees is based on their attractively shaped, lush green leaves. Even if they are never completely cut back, occasional pruning measures are necessary. In this article we would like to go into the following aspects in detail:

• How is with brown, dried up leaf tips procedure?
• How are dead fronds properly cut off?
• What happens to plants that are too big?
• Special case of yucca

Trim unsightly leaf tips

With many Palm species the tips of the leaves change color due to the aging process. They turn brown and dry up, which can seriously disturb the appearance of the palm. You can shorten these unsightly tips at any time. However, be careful not to cut into healthy green so as not to unnecessarily weaken the plant.

Remove dried up foliage

Palm trees do not branch, the leaves only grow back from the middle and the base of the dried up fronds forms the ever thicker trunk over time. In nature, the leaves slowly sink to the ground and eventually break off. This creates the characteristic crown and a healthy trunk.

When is the best time to properly trim the fronds?

It is best to prune the palm in late autumn shortly before you bring it into the house for wintering or, in the case of indoor palm trees, initiate the winter dormancy. This allows the plant to recover in peace from the rigors of maintenance and quickly drives out new, strong fronds in spring.

What can you cut back?

If possible, the foliage is only cut off when it is completely dry. This allows the palm to draw off all usable nutrients and use them to form fresh green.

The brown leaves can often be plucked off by hand without any problems. Alternatively, they are suitable

• a knife with a smooth or serrated blade
• a sharp pair of secateurs

for professional pruning. The cutting tool must be very sharp in any case so that you do not injure the plant with this care measure. It is also advisable to thoroughly disinfect knives or scissors. This ensures that no pathogens or fungi are transferred to the palm from other plants.

method

• Cut leaves close to the trunk.
• Alternatively, carefully break off with your hand.
• Cut back the leaf remnants on the trunk.

This is very important because the remaining leaf axils are in the small pockets mushrooms and Pests can fix. Well protected from environmental influences, diseases and insects can multiply here by leaps and bounds and cause massive damage to the plant within a very short time.

Exception:

If a palm tree transplanted outdoors shows frost damage after winter, these fronds are cut off immediately. The damaged parts of the plant form an open gateway for fungi and other plant diseases and, in the worst case, can cause the plant to die off.

The palm is getting too big

The crown of the palm is its vegetation point of the plant. If you prune the growth here, you risk dying. Here, too, the leaves are only removed when they are completely dry.

In the case of large palms, the only thing that helps is to give them one Location to give where they can freely develop. Look forward to it, because such a magnificent palm tree in living rooms or in the garden is not only rare, it is also an extremely attractive room decoration that not everyone has.

Special case of the yucca palm

The yucca, which can often be found in our apartments, is not a real palm at all, but belongs to the asparagus family. Which are more correct than Palm lily designated plant is extremely robust and usually grows vigorously and quickly in height. After a few years, the space is too big and it has to be cut back.

In contrast to palm trees, you can shorten the yucca considerably, the separated trunk sections can even be used for propagation.