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Question about queen palm cold weather damage/fungus


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Posted

Greetings,

 

We had a cold spell here in Houston (I'm on the south side near Kemah) and it had a profound effect on my palm trees. I have 3 queens, 1 canary date, and a Mexican fan. All of them seem to have survived, however I am concerned about one of my queens in my front yard.

 

It has green fronds growing, but it also has fungus conks growing on the trunk. I spent some time reading here last week about freeze damage and Ganoderma. The conks that are growing on the trunk don't look like ganoderma at all, and there aren't any conks at the base. I've attached pictures of the tree. There is a 2nd queen about 15 feet away, and it doesn't show any visible signs of fungus. Can anyone shed some light on what is going on with this queen?

base.JPG

fungus.JPG

queen.JPG

trunk.JPG

Posted

I can't say for sure it's ganoderma but it doesn't look good. Those nasty things appear to be all up and down the trunk and look like fungi to me. The trunk appears to be penciling in and the leaf crown is pathetic for mid-July. I'm not sure this palm can be saved or is worth saving. Still, I'd like to read other opinions about what's going on with it. If it does have ganoderma it needs to be taken out and destroyed. You won't be able to plant any other palms in its place. If it doesn't have ganoderma it still may be on borrowed time until next winter finishes it off. Queens are cheap and fast growing so you may want to replace it.

  • Upvote 1

Meg

Palms of Victory I shall wear

Cape Coral (It's Just Paradise)
Florida
Zone 10A on the Isabelle Canal
Elevation: 15 feet

I'd like to be under the sea in an octopus' garden in the shade.

Posted

The only concerning part is that its growing on the trunk. I was worried early July when I noticed some fungus growing on decaying boots and husks but not the trunk of my coconut. I sprayed the area with copper fungicide and it's been ok since even with the heavy rains. Hope your queen is ok. 

Posted

I may try to fertilize it and see how it responds. I'm also planning on removing the fungus and spraying some fungicide on the trunk as well. My wife likes our palms and wants to keep them around. We have never fertilized any of the palms in the 4 years since we moved here, so I'm sure that hasn't helped. We're going to start fertilizing all of them on a regular basis to keep them healthy, and we also know what to do now after a freeze.

Is penciling when the new growth grows smaller in diameter than the rest of the trunk? I imagine this is not a good thing?

Worst case, I'll take it down and plant a new queen, assuming that the fungus is not ganoderma. Can anyone please confirm that this is not ganoderma?

Posted

Remove it now or remove it later - that one is on borrowed time and will never be looking good again. Not ganoderma, but where the fungus is growing is all dead wood;probably due to freezing temps.When you cut it down,you will see the smaller inner circle of live tissue that is currently feeding the tree. Try finding a mule palm for a replacement.Hardier hybrid tree with less problems and similar looks.

 

aztropic

Mesa,Arizona

Mesa, Arizona

 

Temps between 29F and 115F each year

Posted

I second the mule.

Meg

Palms of Victory I shall wear

Cape Coral (It's Just Paradise)
Florida
Zone 10A on the Isabelle Canal
Elevation: 15 feet

I'd like to be under the sea in an octopus' garden in the shade.

Posted

How low were your temperatures?

Posted

The freeze happened in January. It bottomed out at 19 degrees and stayed in the mid thirties for a daytime high for 3 days. Quite cold. A lot of our outdoor plants were badly damaged or died. 

 

  • 2 weeks later...
Posted

I was able to get on a ladder today and look at what I had. I also sounded the trunk with a rubber mallet. Where ever it had the fungus, the trunk was not solid. I could press inward a little bit with my thumb, and it felt very dry. Tapping with the rubber mallet also sounded bad under those spots, including a larger soft spot about 10 feet up. I peeled back a little bit of the bark at one of those spots and it looked and felt dry and fibrous, kinda like de-husking a coconut. My other queen up front showed no fungus, but also has a large soft/dead spot. I imagine that both need to be taken down at this point?

 

Here's some pictures:

 

IMG_0085.JPG

IMG_0086.JPG

Posted

@jrs_diesel I would agree with @PalmatierMeg and @aztropic - It doesn't look good and it is probably time for this palm to head to the pearly gates of the compost pile.

Lakeland, FL

USDA Zone 1990: 9a  2012: 9b  2023: 10a | Sunset Zone: 26 | Record Low: 20F/-6.67C (Jan. 1985, Dec.1962) | Record Low USDA Zone: 9a

30-Year Avg. Low: 30F | 30-year Min: 24F

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