Mule palm is going through some changes

[Jtee]

This mule palm has been healthy since the day I planted it, today I just noticed some browning on the upper fronds. I hope it’s not blight. 
anyone seen this before? It’s like half of the frond is browning. 

[Jtee]

Notice how the lower fronds are green at the base and the upper frond at base is half green half brown

 

Edited August 9, 2022 by Jtee

[JLM]

Strange for sure whatever it is...

[Jtee]

13 minutes ago, JLM said:

Strange for sure whatever it is...

I did an image search and something called petiole blight, apparently it’s not very common. I’m hoping I don’t have some fungal disease living in my soil. I had a flowering pear tree that had blight planted not too far from my mule that I removed earlier this year. 
What’s strange is the lower fronds don’t have it, the upper fronds do but not the newest fronds. 

Edited August 9, 2022 by Jtee

[Allen]

I think this is a fungal disease.  I would prune off the 2 affected fronds and spray the palm completely with copper fungicide on a dry morning.  Repeat in a week or 2.  Keep all water (Yard irrigation) off palm and don't spray any foliar fertilizer.  Spray copper on soil around it too.  It should pull thru fine.

Edited August 9, 2022 by Allen

[Allen]

Just to add: You probably know this but I would add that when you prune palms that you suspect disease to sanitize your tools afterwards with alcohol before use on another palm.  I use a house flat trim hand saw to cut my mule to make smooth non breaking cuts.  I would probably use about a half gallon of copper fungicide in a sprayer to spray that palm especially where the petioles go in the trunk and under the fronds as well.  

[Jtee]

1 hour ago, Allen said:

Just to add: You probably know this but I would add that when you prune palms that you suspect disease to sanitize your tools afterwards with alcohol before use on another palm.  I use a house flat trim hand saw to cut my mule to make smooth non breaking cuts.  I would probably use about a half gallon of copper fungicide in a sprayer to spray that palm especially where the petioles go in the trunk and under the fronds as well.  

Thanks you for the info, yeah I cleaned my shears with bleach, I gave it a hair cut this morning, it looks awkward. 
I was going to spray with fungicide this morning but it had rained last night, In fact rain is forecasted for the next 4 days. 

[Allen]

Were the lower ones infected too or did you just want to prune to even it out.  I think getting rid of the affected ones was the way to go because it could spread further especially in this hot/wet.  Fungus is one of the main diseases to all plants.  My grass just this morning had spidery web patches which is brown patch or similar in the lawn.  Once temps go down and the wetness stops fungus will have a harder time taking over.  For my lawn fungus if (daytime temps + humidity = 150 or more) it is ripe to spread fungus when wet.  

[Jtee]

44 minutes ago, Allen said:

Were the lower ones infected too or did you just want to prune to even it out.  I think getting rid of the affected ones was the way to go because it could spread further especially in this hot/wet.  Fungus is one of the main diseases to all plants.  My grass just this morning had spidery web patches which is brown patch or similar in the lawn.  Once temps go down and the wetness stops fungus will have a harder time taking over.  For my lawn fungus if (daytime temps + humidity = 150 or more) it is ripe to spread fungus when wet.  

I had already trimmed off before anyone responded to my message, I was kinda in panic mode lol. The older fronds were just getting raggedy and the tips were dying but they were still kinda healthy. But I’m gonna hit the cuts and all the tree with copper fungicide. I’m having a hard time with this fungal disease and plants this year. 

[Allen]

7 minutes ago, Jtee said:

I had already trimmed off before anyone responded to my message, I was kinda in panic mode lol. The older fronds were just getting raggedy and the tips were dying but they were still kinda healthy. But I’m gonna hit the cuts and all the tree with copper fungicide. I’m having a hard time with this fungal disease and plants this year. 

Honestly I would spray other plants and everything that might be problematic in your yard while you are doing it.  You can't wipe out fungus but you can knock it back some and as soon as cool fall temps get here it won't be able to spread as bad.  Copper fungicide is labeled for almost any plant.  I've never seen damage and I spray all my palms a couple times in spring with it plus my holly trees.  Copper fungicide is a topical so rain will eventually wear it off.  Think super tiny pieces of copper that get lodged in plant fibers.  There are also systemic fungicides that get in thru the roots but they are chemicals and more problematic.  If you had a ongoing problem you could consider those but I would do it only when necessary.  I think your mule will pull thru just watch it in all this rain. Copper doesn't cure but prevent/knock back existing fungus.

[Merlyn]

If it doesn't continue killing the other fronds, it's probably a "petiole blight" that happens occasionally.  But to me it looks like Fusarium, which is incurable and fatal.  The one-sided death is pretty definitive...

[Jtee]

Another update in case anyone in the future experiences this same thing.

One of the newer fronds is browning, on the trunk where the fronds were cut off, the newer fronds that were infected completely browned before the lower ones did. I’m sure I will lose this palm. 

[Allen]

1 hour ago, Jtee said:

Another update in case anyone in the future experiences this same thing.

One of the newer fronds is browning, on the trunk where the fronds were cut off, the newer fronds that were infected completely browned before the lower ones did. I’m sure I will lose this palm. 

Not looking good that it's spreading that fast looks like @Merlyn was right.  I'd still give it a chance

[Collectorpalms]

I wish you luck that it isnt, but it shows classic systems of Fusarium Wilt. Send in a DNA test. Otherwise, Sorry to be blunt. But in Florida and Texas it is rampant and  it shows signs it has moved all along the Gulf Of Mexico with imported palms specifically Mules and Phoenix. It remains in your yard nearly dormant for who knows how many years, but eventual takes out all susceptible palms within a several mile radium. Butia, Queens,  Butia hybrids like Mules, Washintonia, Sabal are most susceptible. No known cure. If you are able to move, that is the best option, otherwise I am wrong...  Hundreds maybe ten of thousands of palms, 90% etc.. in Texas have died in certain counties.

University research article:

https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pdf\archived\PP\PP278\PP278-2079400.pdf

[Collectorpalms]

On 8/9/2022 at 4:16 PM, JLM said:

Strange for sure whatever it is...

How does this differ in what happened to your Pindo that you replaced?

[Jtee]

30 minutes ago, Collectorpalms said:

I wish you luck that it isnt, but it shows classic systems of Fusarium Wilt. Send in a DNA test. Otherwise, Sorry to be blunt. But in Florida and Texas it is rampant and  it shows signs it has moved all along the Gulf Of Mexico with imported palms specifically Mules and Phoenix. It remains in your yard nearly dormant for who knows how many years, but eventual takes out all susceptible palms within a several mile radium. Butia, Queens,  Butia hybrids like Mules, Washintonia, Sabal are most susceptible. No known cure. If you are able to move, that is the best option, otherwise I am wrong...  Hundreds maybe ten of thousands of palms, 90% etc.. in Texas have died in certain counties.

University research article:

https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pdf\archived\PP\PP278\PP278-2079400.pdf

This is pretty depressing, I’m sure it’s wilt now too, I can lose a palm or two but loosing most is sad. It would be one thing If it were just palms but I seem to be having too much fungal disease on a lot of my other trees as well. My soil will welcome cooler temps and humidity. Way too much moisture going on. 

[Las Palmas Norte]

 My condolences on your losses. It would make a palm grower nervous for replanting I suppose.

[Jtee]

11 minutes ago, Las Palmas Norte said:

 My condolences on your losses. It would make a palm grower nervous for replanting I suppose.

Most definitely, I’m done on palms for a while. I’ll see how mine do before any new plantings.  I do have some small sabals on the way from PDN though but no more after this. 

[Allen]

8 minutes ago, Jtee said:

Most definitely, I’m done on palms for a while. I’ll see how mine do before any new plantings.  I do have some small sabals on the way from PDN though but no more after this. 

I'm not 100% convinced this is Fusarium and not a Petiole/Rachis Blight.    I am not a expert on it but Fusarium I thought was much rarer and in your case it would have likely come from a nursery in which case you would have had this problem earlier or from other plants nearby which you don't have many to cause it.  I would still spray the heck out of it and keep fingers crossed and keep it dry.  

[Jtee]

9 minutes ago, Allen said:

I'm not 100% convinced this is Fusarium and not a Petiole/Rachis Blight.    I am not a expert on it but Fusarium I thought was much rarer and in your case it would have likely come from a nursery in which case you would have had this problem earlier or from other plants nearby which you don't have many to cause it.  I would still spray the heck out of it and keep fingers crossed and keep it dry.  

I bought it from Lowes in February 2021 along with a Sylvester and a livestonia. Not problem with those yet. 
 

I remember posting on here when I picked up the mule palm, another poster from the Florida panhandle came up here and got one also, I can’t remember who it was but hopefully he dosent have this problem. 
 

I do have several different palms located about 20 feet away from this mule. 
 

[Collectorpalms]

9 minutes ago, Jtee said:

I bought it from Lowes in February 2021 along with a Sylvester and a livestonia. Not problem with those yet. 
 

I remember posting on here when I picked up the mule palm, another poster from the Florida panhandle came up here and got one also, I can’t remember who it was but hopefully he dosent have this problem. 
 

I do have several different palms located about 20 feet away from this mule. 
 

Good luck. Fusarium works in the matter of two months. Give us an update.

[JLM]

8 hours ago, Collectorpalms said:

How does this differ in what happened to your Pindo that you replaced?

My pindo was transplanted, and it began loosing fronds from the bottom up. It spear pulled. There was also no half dead fronds. Whatever is going on with the Mule in the original post is not what happened to my Pindo. It is sad to see that this has spread to this area of the Gulf Coast. 

[D Palm]

If you remove, try to avoid sawing or creating a lot of airborne matter. 

Replanting a Mule or Pindo in that area may lead to another infection. 

[Jtee]

6 hours ago, D Palm said:

If you remove, try to avoid sawing or creating a lot of airborne matter. 

Replanting a Mule or Pindo in that area may lead to another infection. 

When I do remove I’ll just clip the fronds and dig out the stump, the soil is so moist it’ll be an easy dig. I had a pear tree that had blight earlier this year that didn’t seem to get better, it was about 10 feet away from this mule. I had to remove that one as well. So nothing is going in this area. 

[Allen]

Update?  Does it look like we are having a funeral or a party?