My Sago Palm has developed 6 new shoots growing out of the centre of the crown starting about a week ago. They are growing very fast. I purchased it about a year ago for only $10 and it was a good size compared to the other plants I had seen for $ 20 or more. It has done nothing in the growth dept until now & has developed small patches of yellowing since I brought it home. Very disappointing. How can I stop this from happening, Is there something it is lacking? Maybe more water in the winter. I was a little afraid to give it too much. I think I only watered it about every 2 weeks. It has been outside on my porch facing southwest in a hot climate. During the winter I had it in my big L.R. window facing the same way. I have been watering it a lot more because of the heat also. Thanks for any tips or tricks or good links.
After posting my message I came to realize that I probably didn't water it enough. Can they get sunburned? I am asking because after I put it outside and we began getting very hot weather ( over 35c) I began to notice the browning. Of course it happened quickly, so I moved it over a foot or so behind a matchstick blind. It has ruined it's good looks but I can live with it.
it can get sunburned, if you want to move it to a sunnier location, you need to do it gradually kinda like getting your own skin use to the sun at the begining of the summer. When the fronds come out you can always prune off the old if you need to.
Thanks for your input Carol. I think the only reason I thought it could handle the hot sun is because of it's native origin conditions. I read that it is a slow grower. If so, I just hate to cut off the burnt fronds. I guess that is up to me. The new fronds are coming along nicely and growing pretty fast. I guess that will slow down as they get larger. Is that correct Carol? It sure would be nice to be in a climate where they can be grown outside. I left you for a moment Carol and found this info, so I guess I have answered my own questions. "The lower and older fronds usually yellow and die off as the plant ages. Most palms only support a certain number of fronds. When they reach their quota, a new one replaces an old discolored one" My plant is about two feet tall, from soil to top of fronds and I really don't know how a person can find out how old it is. I'll do some digging on the internet. Okay, now I don't feel so bad.... Have a great day......and thanks for responding.
Your welcome. Make sure when you look up info on your sago palm, that you look under Cycads, as it isn't really a palm at all. Yurs is Cycad revoluta if you need to know.
Hi. I just came across your post. Everything Carol told you is correct. I have found that, although Sago palms (Cycas revoluta) can withstand full sun, most are grown in shade houses before they are sold. I have also experienced yellowing and browning when they are placed in the sun. If not damaged too badly the leaves can recover quite remarkably, but if you have new leaves coming on the old ones will soon start to wither and brown, in any event. So, don't despair. If your soil is porous and has good drainage you can water as frequently as needed, as long as it doesn't get water-logged. Being indoors in winter is much drier than being outdoors in summer, and you will probably need to water a bit more than you have been. Good luck -- sounds like you got a nice plant for a good price!
Thank you for your input also. I have read more about the Sago since my first post about it. The new fronds are growing like crazy and I did move it over about a foot which put it behind and matchstick blind still outside on the porch. I did also cut of the two worst fronds. Now I will just let it do it's thing and see how it weathers. I sometimes water it every day and sometimes every second day. I give it about a litre each time. It's not quite as hot as it was but still pretty hot. I know that what I was doing wrong was not watering it enough during the winter. I was really disappointed to see the brown developing on the fronds. I have wanted one of these plants for a long time but a small one .....say not even one foot tall was at least $20.00 any place I looked. So, I was very excited and snapped it up when I found it for $10. I think it was one of those truck load deals, even so it looked really healthy when I bought it. So, thank you again. Maybe I'll take a picture and post it here in the near future, just for the fun of it. Cheerio for now
I got mine at the superstore for $5.00 each, I was willing to treat them as an ewperiment to see how they handled the outdoors in the winter. I now concider them quite valuable and would be sad to lose them.
there are sago fertilizers(maganese i believe) that can be purchased at most garden centers,may not be soavailable up there as down here in fla.i have a couple in my yard.down here yellowing may be caused by aphids,seem to love sago "juice".not sure if you have that prob up there.i control mine aphid prob with vegatable oil,dish soap and water, seems to work well.when mine start shooting new fronds i cut off all old growth,just for that reason you have,they do yellow in spots.this will also push all growing into new fronds,they grow incredibly fast.sagos are fascinating plants,both beatiful and prehistic looking at the same time.cycads have endured since the dinosuars.good luck and happy gardening tom
I've never seen the sago fertilizer, but I toss epson salts on the ground around my cycads and palms every now and then, never had a problem with aphids or anything else, they like the veggie garden far more three feet away ; )
Thanks for your input...Toutlan. When I first bought the Sago, I came home and immediately looked up how to care for it. On one site it said that growth is very slow. Everything else I've read and been told since says otherwise. Here is the link http://www.evergrowing.com/tips/sagopalm.htm which I am telling you about. Anyway, I'm glad it is a fast grower...don't feel so bad for cutting off the two browned fronds. How many parts each of the veg oil, dishsoap and water do you use...just in case? Will that solution work on other plants, such as my Hibiscus? The aphids love it and I am using a diluted insecticide, which I don't really want to do but it was leftover from another time. Thank you.
actually if i remember right.it was called palm tree fertilizer. main ingregient is maganese .my nieghbor took a yellowing and shriveled frond to our extension office and they said it was a lack of magenise(excuse if spelling is wrong,.it worked for mine ,and, i got some fert. for my palms as well.
I'll take a look around for some palm fertilizer. It is now browning a little on some of the other fronds. Shoot ! Yes that is manganese............There's more at this link.....for anyone else interested.
when i mix the solution i used approx 3 parts oil 3 parts water and about 1 parts soap if that.the oil seems to smother aphids and soap will deture other pests.best thing it wont hurt beneficial bugs such as lady bugs which feast on aphids.sagos only grow about an inch a year.so they arent very fast at all.last year after i removed the flower(pine cone looking thing) off my maleplant and it split and two sets of fronds came out.and this year only one side put out new fronds.i still immediately cut all the old fronds off to make room and get rid of unsightly ones
You need to be carefull with using oil on plants, if this plant is in the sun, any residual oil will literally fry the plant. soap and water can get rid of aphids, there is oil in soap already you don't need to add extra. After you spray, don't forget to wash off the plant. Soap will harm the foliage of most plants if it is left on in the sun.
