Madagascar palm: care and reproduction

The Madagascar palm is visually reminiscent of a palm tree, but it is a succulent plant and one of the easy-care plants. If her low demands are met, she rewards the effort with an unusual look and even with flowers. This makes the houseplant ideal for beginners and anyone without a green thumb. However, the relevant knowledge of the culture must be available.

Location

The Madagascar palm comes - as the name already suggests - from Madagascar and reaches astonishing heights of up to eight meters. In the living room or winter garden it will not take on such dimensions, but it needs the same conditions. That means that it should be as sunny and warm as possible.
Above all, the relationship between light and warmth has to be right. The lighter the Madagascar palm, also known as thick-footed, stands, the higher the temperature must be. If it is in the light shade, however, it should be a little cooler. Among other things, this is of crucial importance for the prevention of diseases and pest infestations. A location on the south side in the direct vicinity of the window is therefore ideal. On the other hand, a place directly above the heater is unfavorable if the plants are not in the blazing sun or illuminated with a plant lamp.

Substrate

The easiest choice to start with is a special substrate for cacti and succulents. In the case of the Madagascar palm, however, this requires more frequent watering, fertilization and repotting - so the maintenance effort is continuously increasing. Mixtures that meet the following requirements are more suitable:

• Permeable and loose, not prone to compaction
• Moderately water-storing
• Nutrient-rich

These conditions can be achieved if potting soil or potting soil is mixed with sand, coconut fiber or cactus soil and thus loosened up.

to water

As a succulent plant, the Madagascar palm is frugal when it comes to watering - however, due to its origin, it has a special feature. The thick foot is dependent on dry and rainy seasons in order to thrive healthily and grow vigorously.

Unfortunately, this is not so easily related to the seasons. Instead, the Madagascar palm shows when it is preparing for a dry season and when it needs a rainy season. When it sheds its leaves, the dry phase begins. This is only poured very sparingly, i.e. just watered in such a way that the substrate does not dry out completely or even become cracked. If the thick foot forms new leaves, the soil can be kept evenly moist.
In addition, the following points are crucial when watering the Madagascar palm:

• Avoid extremes such as dryness and waterlogging
• Use low-calcium, soft water
• Do not use cold water for watering

Tip: If the tap water is very hard, rainwater, untreated pond or aquarium water, and filtered or stale tap water can be used.

Fertilize

The Madagascar palm has a comparatively high nutritional requirement for a succulent plant. However, this also varies depending on the dry and rainy seasons, which can only be reproduced in the living room by watering.
During the dry phases, when the thick foot sheds its leaves, it can only absorb a few nutrients. The substrate is then completely sufficient for the supply and no additional fertilization is required. If a new leaf shoot begins, however, fertilizer should be used. Cactus fertilizers or a liquid complete fertilizer in small quantities are suitable. The addition of nutrients can begin four weeks after the first visible budding and is continued for four to six months. Then the Madagascar palm returns to the resting phase, in which fertilization is stopped and watering is reduced.

Outdoors

The Madagascar palm can spend the summer outdoors as long as the temperatures are above 15 ° C at night. A minimum temperature of 18 ° C is safer for young plants. The thick foot should of course not be planted outdoors, but should continue to be cultivated in the tub. In addition, the following factors must be taken into account when choosing the location:

• As sunny as possible, direct sunlight is ideal
• Protected from cold wind and heavy rain
• Warm, for example in a corner or near a wall

If temperature drops are to be expected, the Madagascar palm should be brought inside.
Tip: If you don't want to constantly move the succulent, you can also treat it to a place by the open window in summer.

Repot

How often repotting is necessary depends on the one hand on the substrate chosen. In the case of cactus soil, it must be changed every two years at the latest. In the case of potting soil or potting soil, it can also be three or four years between repotting.
On the other hand, the size of the Madagascar palm is of course a decisive factor. If the planter has roots, a larger pot should be chosen. It is sufficient to choose the vessel one size larger. In this way, water can also be poured more sparingly, since less substrate has to be completely moistened.
Soil change or repotting should take place with the start of the rainy season, i.e. with the renewed sprouting of the leaves. Gloves are to be worn during the measure in order to avoid skin contact in the event of possible damage to the plant and leaking plant sap.
Tip: The spiked trunk of the Madagascar palm can become a problem when repotting. To avoid injuries, it can be wrapped in paper or provided with styrofoam sheets.

Overwinter

The Madagascar palm does not need a separate wintering, but the aforementioned dry season. This usually falls in the cold months, but can also occur in summer. That depends on the plant and can only be influenced externally to a limited extent. So here you need to take a closer look. However, a change of location is not necessary. Only the watering has to be reduced and the fertilization stopped. The end of the resting phase is indicated by the Madagascar palm by the sprouting of new leaves. It can also be repotted at this point.

Cut

The Madagascar palm does not need any waste and usually does not tolerate it well. Only damaged or diseased leaves should be cut or removed.
A clean and sharp cutting tool, i.e. scissors or a knife, is used for this. In order to protect the skin from direct contact with leaking sap, gloves should be worn and the cutting tool should be thoroughly cleaned afterwards.

Multiply

The Madagascar palm can be propagated by seeds or side shoots. With both variants, however, patience is required, as the thick foot only develops flowers and side shoots after several years.
If you want to try it, you should prefer the propagation of the Madagascar palm via side shoots. This route is faster and requires less effort. The procedure is as follows:

1. The side shoot is cut off with a sharp and clean knife close to the mother plant when it is strong and at least five, better ten, centimeters long.

2. The interface is provided with rooting powder and then left to dry for a day. Drying it off reduces the risk of rot.

3. The shoot is then placed two to three centimeters deep in potting soil or the substrate mixture of the mother plant. The soil should be kept moist, but not wet.

4. The planter must be warm and light. In order to keep the effort for watering low and to promote the rooting of the shoot, the pot can be covered with foil or a hood or placed in a greenhouse.

The reproduction is visibly successful when the shoot grows and new leaves develop.
If you decide to propagate via seeds, you have to put in a little more effort and proceed as described below:

1. If flowers form, they are dusted with a brush. Even if the Madagascar palm is in the open, it is one

Insect pollination not guaranteed.

2. After successful pollination, seeds form that can be collected by the thick foot. If they are not to be sown immediately, they can be stored in a dark and dry place.

3. For germination, they are applied to potting soil or the substrate mixture described and only lightly covered with it.

4. The substrate is well moistened and ideally sprayed for this purpose.

5. When placed in bright light and at 24 to 30 ° C, germination takes several weeks. A heated indoor greenhouse is the ideal location for this time. If this is not available, the planter should be covered again to retain heat and moisture.

6. When the height of about ten centimeters is reached, the young plants are separated and repotted and no longer have to be covered. Keeping the substrate moist is still important, especially at the beginning.

Typical care errors, diseases and pests

Because of its origin, the Madagascar palm is rarely attacked by diseases and pests in local areas. However, scale insects and fungal infections can occur.
Scale insects suck the sap and can cause malformed growth and discoloration. The pests and their sticky secretions can be recognized very clearly on the Madagascar palm. However, combating them is comparatively easy:

• Thoroughly rinse and gently brush off the plant
• Use of natural oil-based pesticides
• Spreading of predators such as ladybirds, lacewing and hoverflies or lacewing wasps

In the event of a fungal infection or the spread of rot, the leaves not only discolour, they also wither and fall off prematurely. The substrate also emits a musty, moldy smell and a whitish or gray coating can form on it. The fungal spores can also spread in cracks or injuries in the leaves and bark - i.e. initially not to be found in the substrate. To save the Madagascar palm, the following measures are important:

• Remove the affected parts of the plant with a sharp knife or scissors and allow the interfaces to dry
• Immediate and thorough change of the entire substrate
• Regulation of the watering amount

Above all, the putrefaction is due to two typical care mistakes. This can be either a lack of watering or watering that has to be flushed. Because if the Madagascar palm has a lack of water, the leaves, trunk and bark become wilted, limp and cracked. Germs can thus spread better. Waterlogging, in turn, promotes rot very directly and above all in the substrate. Other typical mistakes in the culture of the Madagascar palm include:

• Too dark location
• Inappropriate relationship between heat and light - for example rather dark but very high temperatures
• Ground cold
• Substrate with a tendency to compaction or poor in nutrients
• Rare watering
• Use of hard water
• Failure to comply with dry phases and rainy seasons

Caution: poisonous

The Madagascar palm is poisonous in all parts, so caution is required when blending and the skin should be protected from direct contact with the sap. It should also be used in households with small children and animals that come into contact with them while playing or Could pick up plant parts, stand out of reach or dispense with the thick foot will.