Here's my situation. A client of mine sent me a photo of a phoenix canariensis. This tree is obviously quite old and has been pruned laborously.(location unknown) I will include a photo. He wants to know if I can prune his babies (9 years old) similarly. That is to say, trim the pineapple, since his trees have not yet developed a trunk. I will have to send a photo of his tree in a follow-up post. His trees are in hawaii at 4000 feet elevation.Temperature has never dropped below 40 F . Quite a wet enviorment though with about 220 inches plus annually. The base of the tree never seems to dry out and small rootlets tend to grow up into it. It's base is a little over 3 feet across. As it stands now, I wonder if it is being protected from the cold because it is not pruned. (40 F is cold for us hawaiians) Also, would pruning the pineapple damage or weaken the tree in any way? Bye the way, I am aware of the potassium dificiency which you might notice in the follow up photo. Please comment if you feel so inclined. I just realized the photo he sent me is too big to upload. I'll try and take a photo of his photo. Bad quality but maybe you can still get the idea. I think I can upload the other as well.
Hi Bereal, I realize you posted this a long time ago, and I don't have an answer for you, but maybe these folks will. http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/palms/ Good luck, Newt
