How to Grow
- Temperature. The ideal temperature for growing your areca palm is in a location with daytime temperatures of 75-85°F, dropping to no less than 65°F at night.
- Humidity. In their native range, these plants thrive in high humidity. ...
- Water. These tropical evergreens like plenty of water but you have to take care not to overwater. ...
- Fertilizer. ...
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Are areca palms easy growing?
Areca palm (Dypsis lutescens, formerly Chrysalidocarpus lutescens) comes from Madagascar where it grows in the wild. The areca palm is one of the most popular houseplant palms because it is inexpensive and easy to grow.
Can we grow areca palm from cutting?
You can't grow an areca palm from a cutting, but it's not difficult to create new plants using rooted offshoots.
How do you look after an areca palm?
Areca palms need a humid environment, so mist the leaves a few times a week with tepid water or stand on a pebble tray that is topped up with water. Feed every couple of months during the growing season with a balanced fertiliser. Wipe the leaves occasionally to remove dust.
Where should areca palms be planted?
Light. Outdoors, these plants like bright, filtered sunlight, but they also can tolerate full sun. Indoors, areca palms do best with bright light exposure from a south- or west-facing window.
Can you divide areca palms?
Although you can divide an Areca Palm at any time, it is best done in Spring when the plant is starting to grow strongly. Before dividing the stems from the main plant, remember to water it well the day before so that the soil gets loosened up a bit which ultimately allows you to separate the roots more easily.
How long do areca palms live?
of growth per year until they reach a mature height of 6 or 7 feet (1.8 or 2.1 m.). Areca palm is one of the few palms that can tolerate trimming without serious harm, making it possible to keep mature plants indoors for their full lifespan of up to 10 years.
Do areca palms attract rats?
Specifically, the Sorotas look dimly on the "thick, junglelike, dense, 30- foot-high, dark hedge" of areca palms and other neighboring plants that attract "vermin such as raccoons, possums, rats, snakes, mosquitoes like you cannot imagine," Marion Sorota wrote to Town Hall.
What kind of soil do areca palms need?
The best potting soil mix for an areca palm contains a mixture of peat-based soil and sand for rich nutrients, aeration, superior drainage, and weight to support the top-heavy plant. Areca palm soil should be slightly acidic with a pH ranging from 6.1 to 6.5.
How often should you water areca palm?
The leaves/fronds of Areca Palm yellow due to irregular watering and a parched plant. Water your plant regularly whenever the topsoil dries out. Ensure that the soil is moist at all times but not soggy.
What are the benefits of areca palm?
Top Areca Palm BenefitsPurifies Indoor Air. ... Produces More Oxygen. ... Safe for Pets. ... Elevates Humidity Level Indoors. ... Feng Shui Plant. ... Helps in Relieving Stress. ... Easy to Care For. ... Adds a Touch of Elegance.
What is the best fertilizer for areca palms?
General houseplant fertilizer is suitable for Areca Palms, but they will grow best when given a specialized palm fertilizer high in nitrogen and potassium and low in phosphorus.
What zone do you grow Areca palms in?
Areca palm grows best in zones 8, 9, 10, and 11.
How tall do Areca palms get?
Areca palms grow to about 10 feet at max indoors. When planted outside, they can reach up to 30 feet tall. In warmer zones, this can be achieved by planting directly in the soil where the winters stay above freezing. Otherwise, you’ll want to keep it in a container so you can overwinter it indoors or in a greenhouse.
How to keep areca palms healthy?
Humidity. High humidity is the natural environment for these palms. If you’re growing indoors, it can be pretty hard to keep the ideal humidity levels, especially during the winter when the heater or HVAC is running that dries out the indoor humidity. Give your areca palms a spritz of diluted water once a day.
Why are Areca palms pink?
Areca palm diseases. While this plant is grown indoors, it’s still susceptible to a variety of palm diseases because of the low sunlight and high humidity. Blight is common on indoors palms and is caused by fungus. If you see pink powder on the palm leaves, this is probably the work of Gliocladium blight.
When to divide Areca palms?
You’ll need a friend or neighbor (or last year’s generation) to cut out a new areca palm from. The best time to divide areca is early in the spring, as this is when the plant is ready to forge new growth.
How long does it take for orange seeds to germinate?
First, planting from seeds will take up to 2 months before you see any germination. The germination time is about 6-8 weeks on average and this is only for the seedling.
Do Areca palms like wet feet?
You’ll want multiple drainage holes so if one gets clogged, the water can reroute to others and prevent waterlogging. Areca palms don’t like wet feet. Their root systems should be moist, but not drowned with water.
How to propagate Areca palm?
The best way to propagate an areca palm is by dividing it. When you repot the plant in spring, you may find that a clump at the edge comes away naturally. Alternatively, you can cut a clump away using a sharp knife. Ideally it should have four or five stems, with roots attached.
How much sunlight do Areca palms need?
Avoid direct sunlight, as this will scorch the leaves, and keep away from draughts. Areca palms need a warm room – ideally around 18°-24°C, with a minimum of 10°C in winter.
What is a areca palm?
Plant size. The areca palm ( Chrysalidocarpus lutescens) is a graceful indoor palm that brings a touch of elegance to any room. Numerous stems emerge from the base to produce graceful, arching fronds that look a little like bamboo. The areca palm is also sold as Dypsis lutescens or Areca lutescens.
Why are my Areca palm leaves turning yellow?
Yellowing leaves is normal on lower leaves as they age. Widespread yellow leaves on your areca palm could mean that the plant is sitting in too much direct sun. It could also be due to underwatering. Drooping, cracked or folding leaves mean that the plant needs more water.
How to keep areca palms moist?
Water thoroughly whenever the top few centimetres of compost have become dry – this may be quite frequent in warm weather. Ideally, use rainwater, distilled water or purified water, especially if you live in a hard water area, as areca palms are sensitive to the chemicals in tap water. Ensure that the compost is evenly moist ...
How do spider mites affect Areca palms?
Red spider mite can affect areca palms. The leaves and stems of the plant will be covered in fine webbing and the upper surface of the leaf becomes mottled. If you look carefully, using a magnifying glass, you will see mites and eggs on the undersides of the leaves. Improve air circulation boost humidity.
Where is the Areca palm native to?
The areca palm is also sold as Dypsis lutescens or Areca lutescens. Native to the tropics of Madagascar, it’s also known as the butterfly palm, golden feather palm, bamboo palm, golden cane or yellow palm. The areca palm is good at humidifying the air and is a great air purifier too, capable of removing toxins and pollutants from the air.
How tall do Areca palms grow?
In an outdoor environment, the growth of the palm is not limited, so it can grow up to 30 feet high. The areca palms that my mother cared for were nearly four feet tall, so she had been tending to then for quite some time.
How often do areca palms produce water?
It can produce up to a litter of water every 24 hours, which is perfect if you have asthma, allergies, or other breathing complications. The areca palm is a unique plant that requires a lot of care, but now that you know what is required, you can purchase one and make the tropics part of your home décor.
Why do areca palms die?
Ensure that the plant is in a well draining pot because sitting in water will cause the roots to rot. If you overwater the palm and there is no place for the water to drain, it is likely that the plant will die. In fact, this is the most common reason that a areca palm dies. Also, this plant does not like water that has chemicals in it.
How long do Areca palms live?
Areca palms are plants with gorgeous long, feathery fronds that demand a lot of care and attention. Considering that the plant has a ten year lifespan, that is a lot effort to care for a plant, but you will be rewarded with a tropical feel in your living space. Let’s take a look at what the areca palm needs to thrive.
Can you trim a Areca palm?
The areca palm will create new growths from the center of the plant, which means that pruning or trimming the palm down will harm the new fronds. If the tips of the leaves become brown and unsightly, they can be trimmed, but new growths should never be trimmed because that can stunt the growth of the plant.
Can you fertilize palms in the winter?
The fronds of the palm will benefit from a micronutrient spray, so use a diluted mixture that you can spritz directly on the leaves. Do not fertilize the plant during the winter. It will not need the extra nutrients when it is not growing, so the salt that is present in the fertilizer will simply sit in the soil.
Is Areca Palm good for you?
Benefits of the Areca Palm. The areca palm is extremely effective at cleaning the air that is in your home. According to Doctor Wolverton’s research in the NASA Clean Air Study, the areca palm has the eighth best formaldehyde removal rate for plants. In addition, it can also serve as a humidifier.
What temperature should I plant an Areca palm?
Temperature. The ideal temperature for growing your areca palm is in a location with daytime temperatures of 75-85°F, dropping to no less than 65°F at night. These tropical plants do not appreciate large fluctuations in temperature, so be sure to avoid placing it too close to heat sources, drafty windows, or doors.
Why are my Areca palms not growing?
When grown indoors, you are unlikely to see any disease issues on your areca palm. When plants fail to thrive, it’s usually as a result of environmental conditions: issues related to water, lighting, temperature, or nutrient content.
Why are my Areca palms turning yellow?
But beware, as too much direct sunlight may scorch the foliage and cause it to turn yellow.
How tall can a palm tree grow?
In USDA Hardiness Zones 10 and above, they can be planted outdoors and can reach up to 30 feet tall at maturity. Areca palms have several common names, including golden cane, butterfly, yellow, and bamboo palm. These members of the Arecaceae family are endemic to Madagascar, where they can be found in a very specific habitat of slightly acidic, ...
How many leaflets does a palm tree have?
These clumping palms feature multiple stems growing from the base and soft, narrow, feathery fronds each with approximately 40 to 60 pairs of leaflets. They grow about six to ten inches per year and mature plants range from five to eight feet tall when grown indoors.
How long does it take for a plant to grow from seed?
From Seed. This process does take a bit of time. You can expect seeds to germinate after about six weeks and for it to take several years for plants to reach three or four feet in height. If you happen to have fresh seeds, you can plant them right away.
Can areca palms be grown indoors?
The good news is that areca palms grown indoors don’t tend to have significant issues with pests and disease, but there are a couple of things to watch out for.
Where do Areca palms grow?
The plant is native to Madagascar, but has been naturalized in other tropical locales: The Andaman Islands, El Salvador, Cuba, The Dominican Republic, Jamaica, and South Florida, to name a few.
How to care for Areca palm?
You should start by placing it in a partly shaded location, then moving it to a better-lit part of the house after a few weeks. Make sure that you are using moist, well-drained soil for your palm.
Why are Areca palms drooping?
Arecas are at risk for fungus known as Pink Rot and Ganoderma. Both are caused by the high degree of humidity necessary to grow the Areca Palm, and both can cause the fronds to discolor and droop. Indoors, the number of pests you will have to contend with will be low.
What are Areca palms used for?
Areca Palms are commonly used for decoration around the house. Their large size lends them to use as decoration. They can cover windows to create privacy, provide an “accent” in the garden, or be used in succession to create an impressive hedge.
How to grow a palm tree from a root ball?
Dig a sizeable hole that’s approximately twice as wide as the root ball of the palm. Make sure that it is deep enough so that the root ball fits in comfortably, but still protrudes above the surface by about an inch. Fill in your hole, and remember to keep it moist and watered while the plant grows .
When was the Areca Palm discovered?
These capabilities added to the Areca Palm’s popularity as an office/houseplant when they were first discovered in the 1980s, and it retains its prominence to this day.
Can you transplant Areca to the outdoors?
Arecas won’t grow as large indoors as they do outdoors, but you will still need to provide them with ample room to spread out. If your Areca starts to grow too large, however, you always have the option of transplanting it to the outdoors.
How to grow Areca palms?
An Areca Palm can be propagated by division or by growing from seed. The division of a mature plant into two or more sections is the fastest and easiest way to grow new Areca Palms. Seeds take about 4 weeks to germinate and several years to reach 3-4 feet in height.
Why propagate Areca palms?
The most obvious reason is that you’re absolutely in love with these stately and impressive plants, and would love to have more of them in your home. You could even choose to give the new Areca Palms to your loved ones as gifts.
Why are my Areca palms turning yellow?
So if you are noticing yellowing leaves despite moist soil, it can be a sign of overwatering – a sure-fire way to kill your new Areca Palm plants. Another common Areca Palm propagation problem is a fungal disease called Pink Rot. We know that new Areca Palms require high humidity levels and moist soil.
Why do Areca palms like heat?
This is because it will be followed by warm summer months with plenty of heat and humidity – two conditions that Areca Palms absolutely love. This will also help the new plants to recover better from the stress of being divided from the mother plant.
Why are the leaves on my Areca palm turning brown?
If the leaves of your newly propagated Areca Palm are starting to turn brown at the tips, it can signal a number of problems, including underwatering, excess direct sunlight, or over-fertilizing. Areca Palm offspring can also be sensitive to fluoride that your tap water might contain, resulting in brown leaf tips.
How to remove Areca Palm from pot?
When removing Areca Palm from its pot, pat the sides of the pot to loosen the root ball thereby allowing the plant to come out of its container with minimal effort on your part. Once your Areca Palm is out of the container, gently shake the soil off its roots and try to identify the roots attached to different stems.
How long does it take for a palm tree to grow?
Although not difficult to propagate from seed, it will take quite some time to grow a mature plant. Areca Palms take approximately one month to germinate, 2-3 months to reach 4-6 inches in height, and several years to reach 3-4 feet in height.
How tall do Areca palms grow?
Learn more... Areca palms are a well-loved indoor plant that tend to grow to be about 6 to 7 feet (1.8 to 2.1 m) tall. While this plant can be purchased at a nursery or garden center, you can grow your own palm by cutting and transplanting a smaller offshoot, or by germinating the seeds yourself.
How to separate Areca palms?
1. Separate the offshoot with a knife. Examine the base of the Areca palm to find any offshoots that are growing from the main branch. Use a sharp knife to split this offshoot away from the main plant. If you’re having trouble separating this offshoot, try using sawing motions with your blade.
How to get rid of Areca seeds?
1. Scrub the seeds against a mesh screen to get rid of the outer skin. Take a handful of Areca seeds and place them on top of a large, mesh screen. Turn on a hose or tap, then place both the screen and the seeds beneath the water. Rub the wet seeds along the mesh until the outer, fibrous layer of each seed washes away.
How to get a plant to dry out?
Instead, look for an east-, south-, or west-facing window in your home , as these will give your plant a proper, balanced amount of sunlight and shade. ...
How to get a plant out of the soil?
Pull the separated offshoot from the soil by the root. Grip the offshoot with both hands and try to free it from the soil. Pull on the plant slowly to loosen it from the roots, then tug it out of the soil completely. Don’t try to pull out the plant in 1 go.
Can you grow Areca palms in pots?
Areca palms can be grown in pots that are as small as 6 in (15 cm) and as large as 52 in (130 cm). You can use peat and sand as an alternative for traditional soil mixes, as long as you combine them in a 3:1 ratio.
So, What Exactly Is Areca Palm?
Origins
How to Care For Areca Palms
Other Commonly Asked Questions
Further Reading
Now You Know How to Care For Areca Palms!