Chamaedorea Brachypoda

[sashaeffer]

Am a Chamaedorea species fan and have many that do will indoors. Bought this Cham. brachypoda palm late spring/early summer and it came with most of it's soil and looked good. In looking up culture and care I read they prefer shade and had the perfect spot in a corner of a hallway that does see a lot of in direct light.  I also had read a note by Phil at Jungle Music they prefer RO water as it's leaves can show affects of water it doesn't like(city water I assume) so this palm only gets RO water, all my other indoor palms get collected rain water.

This palm seems to be a fast grower as it's always shooting up new spears and opening fronds but at the same time leaves turn brown easily so never really looks good. Soil is kept on damp side and the discoloration of the leaves is dryness. I do not mist the palm because I've had a history of other species getting damaged from misting(using RO or rain water)

Anyone else have one of these that is kept indoors? or potted but outside?  any advice?

 

 

[Ben in Norcal]

Looks pretty dry, Scott?

[sashaeffer]

Well I don't want to over water it, but soil seems pretty moist to me.  In reading about it's care I read where it prefers a cooler climate that changes little in temps. I thought maybe 76 is too warm indoors, and thought about moving to my basement where I have other palms. It's about 8/10f cooler there and still would only get indirect light. (north windows only)

 

[Rusty on Pine Is.]

Would it be possible to place it on a pan with pebbles/stones filled with water to increase the humidity?  I would make the pan abt twice the diameter of the pot.

And it sounds like you have a good  handle on it's water needs, but is the media wet or moist?.....my limited experience with Chams is although many like their water, they really need very well drained media when grown in pots.

Thanks for the post, it has me thinking i might get one to grow outside.

Good luck with it. 

[sashaeffer]

14 minutes ago, Rusty on Pine Is. said:

Would it be possible to place it on a pan with pebbles/stones filled with water to increase the humidity?  I would make the pan abt twice the diameter of the pot.

And it sounds like you have a good  handle on it's water needs, but is the media wet or moist?.....my limited experience with Chams is although many like their water, they really need very well drained media when grown in pots.

Thanks for the post, it has me thinking i might get one to grow outside.

Good luck with it. 

Yes, I've learned over time to keep "most" Chamaedorea palms(especially trunking forms) a bit on the dry side..but not much. clustering species I keep more damp but always in well draining soil. When buying palm online I request that they be sent in pot if possible since they will stay in the soil they've been used to. Now, some stuff like from Floribunda comes in volcanic cinder, I need to water them more often since water pretty much runs right through.

This Chamaedorea came with most of it's soil, and when potted was able to only have to add maybe 10% more.

[PalmatierMeg]

Scott, it resembles C. stolonifera (which I have) but with more upright stems. I agree with Rusty: the foliage appears exposed to low humidity, common in most homes. Chams like high humidity. Leaves also look anemic. I know they like shade but some also prefer bright, indirect light, Have you checked for spider mites? An infestation comes on fast and can suck the life out of leaves before you know it. Be aware that conventional insecticides don't work on mites. Miticides are expensive but I've had to invest in a couple because of my mite-magnet Arecas. Miticides are also toxic, so you have to treat plants outdoors and wear gloves and a mask. A couple home remedies to try: spray plant with dilute coffee and spread coffee grounds around stems. Or spray plant with a solution of non-detergent soap. I use castile soap I found in CVS; it's made of coconut or olive oil. I shave a few bits off a bar and dissolve it in a bowl of water.

[XYZ]

What to say? It's great to have a fan of chamaedoreas here with such tenacity.

Besides the cloud forest mini gems, couldn't think of a worse candidate for indoor cultivation. These are true lowland tropical rainforest palms (= hot and humid) and have enormous footprints when given space. Yours looks, frankly, tortured. They hate prolonged direct sunlight; they're understory palms. As you are now aware, they have paper thin leaves that are easily damaged and are very attractive to spider mites and mealy bugs. They do indeed do well for a time outdoors in the tropics in very large tubs, but a healthy specimen will walk out of even those in a few years looking for additional acreage. About eight years ago I planted some modest starts of the Hodel & Castillo Mont wild-collected male from Izabal in a friend's commercial display conservatory in Guatemala City, together with a few nice Reinhardtia gracilis var gracilior, select type Chamaedorea geonomiformis and a very pretty dwarf C. sp. This is a group of short-statured palms that occurs in sympatry in nature in NE Guatemala and NW Honduras. The circular bed was almost three meters in diameter and had very sharply drained soil beefed up and ammended for calciphile plants. Long story short, the C. brachypoda overran the entire bed by mid-2014 and had submerged all of its neighbors in the process. The upside is that the very tight mass planting of C. brachypoda does look stunning. This is a seriously handsome palm when properly indulged.

IME, there are very few species in the genus that excel (as opposed to just surviving as miserable half-ghosts) as indoor potted plants or normal interiorscapes. I have not grown C. geonomiformis/tenella as an indoor pot plant, but I think it might work. As you probably know, C. metallica is bullet-proof. There are a few others that also are worth a go if mites are kept at bay. Many of the miniatures are good candidates for a large, cool Wardian case for a few years, so that might also be an option for you.

Good luck with the plant.

J

 

[Pal Meir]

Fast draining soil (with does not get soggy) + regular (lots of) water (!!!) + no wet feet; it does not seem to be a problem of air humidity to me if the palm is not infected by spider mites.

[PalmatierMeg]

16 minutes ago, stone jaguar said:

What to say? It's great to have a fan of chamaedoreas here with such tenacity.

Besides the cloud forest mini gems, couldn't think of a worse candidate for indoor cultivation. These are true lowland tropical rainforest palms (= hot and humid) and have enormous footprints when given space. Yours looks, frankly, tortured. They hate prolonged direct sunlight; they're understory palms. As you are now aware, they have paper thin leaves that are easily damaged and are very attractive to spider mites and mealy bugs. They do indeed do well for a time outdoors in the tropics in very large tubs, but a healthy specimen will walk out of even those in a few years looking for additional acreage. About eight years ago I planted some modest starts of the Hodel & Castillo Mont wild-collected male from Izabal in a friend's commercial display conservatory in Guatemala City, together with a few nice Reinhardtia gracilis var gracilior, select type Chamaedorea geonomiformis and a very pretty dwarf C. sp. This is a group of short-statured palms that occurs in sympatry in nature in NE Guatemala and NW Honduras. The circular bed was almost three meters in diameter and had very sharply drained soil beefed up and ammended for calciphile plants. Long story short, the C. brachypoda overran the entire bed by mid-2014 and had submerged all of its neighbors in the process. The upside is that the very tight mass planting of C. brachypoda does look stunning. This is a seriously handsome palm when properly indulged.

IME, there are very few species in the genus that excel (as opposed to just surviving as miserable half-ghosts) as indoor potted plants or normal interiorscapes. I have not grown C. geonomiformis/tenella as an indoor pot plant, but I think it might work. As you probably know, C. metallica is bullet-proof. There are a few others that also are worth a go if mites are kept at bay. Many of the miniatures are good candidates for a large, cool Wardian case for a few years, so that might also be an option for you.

Good luck with the plant.

J

 

Thanks for the info. You reminded me why I've avoided this species: it is highly invasive.

[sashaeffer]

Appreciate all the input. I moved palm to different location and we'll see what happens.

[Steve Mac]

It is probably not this, but I have had this problem in a few pots from time to time and did not realize it for quite a while.

I call it tracking. I don't know if it is called anything else.

It is where when you water the pot all of the water just runs through a few internal channels and does not wet all of the soil.

It appears like a very well draining soil, but the plant roots stay mostly dry.

I fix this by submerging the whole pot in a surfactant solution for a few minutes twice a year.

But it is more likely to be this, as mentioned, simply unsuitable for a pot.

The one in my garden sends up new shoots two and three feet away like bamboo,

yours looks like it was multiply planted and is crowded.

It is likely never to be happy in a small pot. A pot is a bit like zone pushing for a Brachy.

 

[sashaeffer]

Because of your post, it reminded me of being told that once before. Could very well be. Thanks.

[PalmatierMeg]

No chance of this palm invading Nebraska.

[richnorm]

1. check for thrips.

2. Does that pot have drainage holes?  Too wet can give that look.

3. Looks like a bunch of offsets stuffed in a pot so may not have  roots...  I would tip them out and inspect and refesh the mix.

Good luck. I find this a very easy grow which tolerates cool wet and temporary dry conditions with ease.  Would well benefit from time in your garden over the warmer months in full shade.

[sashaeffer]

Update:  I moved the Brachypada to my basement where it is cooler....but more of a stable temp. It resides by a North facing window and has turned around. Still a fast grower as far as sending up new shoots, and pups from the soil but the browning of the leaves has pretty much stopped. I hope it continues it's turn around as it's a beautiful palm.

Note: second pic the flash went off so looks brighter than normal.

 

 

Edited September 20, 2016 by sashaeffer

[colin Peters]

There is a very large group of C. stolonifera at Lyon arboretum here on Oahu, and many of the times it has ankle deep mud around it. So does

well in wet, very humid conditions, but am curious why it dosen't rot out. Good luck, looking better in last update.

aloha

[PalmatierMeg]

2 hours ago, sashaeffer said:

Update:  I moved the Brachypada to my basement where it is cooler....but more of a stable temp. It resides by a North facing window and has turned around. Still a fast grower as far as sending up new shoots, and pups from the soil but the browning of the leaves has pretty much stopped. I hope it continues it's turn around as it's a beautiful palm.

Note: second pic the flash went off so looks brighter than normal.

 

 

Looks much better, Scott. A very attractive Cham but not in my back yard.