We are having trouble with California fan palms. We planted two (about 6 feet tall) in a planter, along with a couple of other palm breeds (Sylvester Dates and Windmill Fans). The others look great, but the California fan palms are getting more yellow every day. The bottom fronds are sagging, and even the top ones are starting to get yellowish and a little crinkly/brittle. Is it possible that we are overwatering? Once we noticed the problem about 10 days ago, we started watering the hell out of them, thoroughly soaking the soil at least 2 times a day. But they still seem to be getting worse. Help, please!
There might be some differences between the California fan palm (Washingtonia filifera) and the Mexican species (Washingtonia robusta). The latter lives happily in Florida and puts up with wet. We're seeing a fusarium disease that rapidly kills Washingtonias, but that's not at all likely to be your problem.
California fan palms are basically desert palms they flourish in dry heat and can go days without water. They store water in there trunks to keep them in case of a drought. Hope this helps U with them. Tom24
