Young date palms help

[Victor G.]

Hello everyone!

I have these small date palms (they're about 1 year old) seen in the pictures, which simply will not grow any new leaves for about one and a half months now.
But I guess, since it's a slow growing plant, it's normal.

My main reasons to worry are two:
1) The older leaves are started with brown tips and now are getting a lot browner (although somebody told me that this is not necessarily bad)
2) Two of the palms have very thin leaves and do not show any signs of growth at all (have been like that a long time though)

I used a complete fertilizer a couple of months ago, the temperature here is steadily warm and we're getting plenty of sunshine after the winter passed.
Also, I water them every second day (evening)
Hardiness Zone is estimated to a 10b here.

Does anyone have advice on what to do?

Many thanks in advance!
Victor

 

IMAGES: (could not link them for some reason)
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[kinzyjr]

@Victor G. Welcome to PalmTalk.  Are you located in either Florida or Texas?

[Palmlover_78]

That soil there in looks VERY dry, how often are you watering them? Newly planted trees need lots of water to help establish, Try watering more....A LOT more

[zimm]

For 1 year these look good  as far as growth, but they look like they need a lot more water.  

[mnorell]

Hi Victor, and welcome to PalmTalk! 

If you could list your location (city/town), that will allow us to understand what type of climate you have. "10b" can be anything from San Diego to Miami, or numerous spots in Mexico, quite a diversity of climates. It looks from your photos like you are in a desert area. One thing I can add is that I have a number of date palms I sprouted from commercial dates, and they are about the same size as yours. I have noticed that after they are transplanted, either into the ground or into single pots from a community seedling pot, they halt in apparently suspended animation for a length of time before you will notice any top-growth, and are quite sensitive at this time to moisture deprivation. Aside from the shock of transplanting (and the handling of the roots that happens during that process), they are growing a large root system for their future needs, and they really need a lot of water at this point in their lives. I lost one planted in the ground despite what I thought was a good watering regime, in Rancho Mirage, near Palm Springs (California). When I checked the soil, it was dry as a bone! Understanding the drainage qualities of your soil (sometimes in desert areas much faster-draining than you might imagine) is an important part of growing these, or any other, plant.

There is an old saying that date palms want their heads in the fire, and the feet in water. This is why they are primarily located in nature in natural oases or in proximity to underground rivers or other aquifers. So you may want to "flood" yours regularly, or keep an irrigation system with a drip-nozzle on for much of the time while the palm is young, to give it a chance for the roots to reach down and out until they can tap into some groundwater. Carefully dig down regularly around the palm to monitor the level of moisture around the root-zone, to make sure it is not starving for water. If you do this, just be patient, monitor the quality of the soil and the suppleness of the leaves, and within a year you will see some strong growth. Once they get going, they grow quite quickly! In fact, seedlings placed early into their permanent position will eventually outpace large, costly specimens dug from commercial farms and planted with cranes.

[Victor G.]

Hello again and thanks a lot for your replies!

I don't live in the US, I live in Greece, a bit outside of Athens.

I had a fear of overwatering them, I guess that's why I held back a little (thinking also that date palms are very drought tolerant, at least as adults)

 

The climate here is rather semi-arid, although since the place is by the sea (new photo included) and the humidity is year-round high, it cannot form a desert. But th vegetation is sparse, there are only a few olive and eucalyptus trees here and there.

Maybe I can try watering them more and see the results

 

Thank you again for your replies!

Best regards, Victor

 

[ahosey01]

On 7/13/2021 at 2:16 AM, Victor G. said:

Hello again and thanks a lot for your replies!

I don't live in the US, I live in Greece, a bit outside of Athens.

I had a fear of overwatering them, I guess that's why I held back a little (thinking also that date palms are very drought tolerant, at least as adults)

 

The climate here is rather semi-arid, although since the place is by the sea (new photo included) and the humidity is year-round high, it cannot form a desert. But th vegetation is sparse, there are only a few olive and eucalyptus trees here and there.

Maybe I can try watering them more and see the results

 

Thank you again for your replies!

Best regards, Victor

 

Date palms grow in dry climates but generally directly in ground water.  Fruiting dates will sometimes receive up to 200 gallons of water PER DAY in clay soil by commercial farmers.  You won’t over-water.  I give mine 200 gallons 4x a week during the summer.  They’ll grow directly in water if the water has some movement or drainage.

[Victor G.]

35 minutes ago, ahosey01 said:

Date palms grow in dry climates but generally directly in ground water.  Fruiting dates will sometimes receive up to 200 gallons of water PER DAY in clay soil by commercial farmers.  You won’t over-water.  I give mine 200 gallons 4x a week during the summer.  They’ll grow directly in water if the water has some movement or drainage.

Ah okay; I had it confused because I'm seeing various palms here in Greece which grow on arid soils and they seem to be doing fine without irrigation. So I assumed the plant itself prefers the aridity (kinda like cacti, etc.)

I will definetely water them more, thanks for the advice!

Yesterday, I accidentally cut one (but just one) of the plant's top roots (about 4cm away from the trunk). Hope it will be no problem to the plant.

Many thanks again for the answer!
Victor