Majesty palms, please explain it to me

[Gottagrowemall]

Okay so I live in Palm Coast FL and all the time I’ve been into palms and tropicals I’ve seen this majesty palms at garden centers and nurseries, HUGE dirt cheap. What is going on? These things are 6 feet tall sometimes for less than 20$. 
 

I planted one in the ground and it grew slowly in a partly shady area. For being root bound from the pot I thought it would take off. Handled the cold this year pretty well. I moved it to a sunnier spot and it’s doing okay but still growing SUPER slowly.

1.) Why don’t you see them used more in commercial planting or landscapes? 

2.) How fast do these grow from seed? If they’re retail 22$ then the wholesalers must be selling them for 4-8$ each.

3.) Are they even good as an indoor plant? I’ve seen a lot of people online say they always die or grow weird indoors.

[Jeff zone 8 N.C.]

They have almost completely replaced the Kentia palm which they resemble but I find the Kentia way more beautiful. They are used in large planter pots here on the N.C. coast where they frequently survive the winter looking ok and even if burnt back quickly recover in early spring, if they have overhead protection. This years lows burnt a lot of them back though. No worries the big box stores are full of them already and like you say they are cheap. I used to be a nurseryman and frequently traveled to Florida to purchase plants. It always amazed me how fast nurseries there could grow out their plants to saleable sizes.  I won't even try to say here how fast they could grow things there as most people would think I was exaggerating, as I thought the growers there were doing when they told me. Took me years to believe their grow times till I saw it myself.

[SeanK]

1 hour ago, Jeff zone 8 N.C. said:

They have almost completely replaced the Kentia palm which they resemble but I find the Kentia way more beautiful. They are used in large planter pots here on the N.C. coast where they frequently survive the winter looking ok and even if burnt back quickly recover in early spring, if they have overhead protection. This years lows burnt a lot of them back though. No worries the big box stores are full of them already and like you say they are cheap. I used to be a nurseryman and frequently traveled to Florida to purchase plants. It always amazed me how fast nurseries there could grow out their plants to saleable sizes.  I won't even try to say here how fast they could grow things there as most people would think I was exaggerating, as I thought the growers there were doing when they told me. Took me years to believe their grow times till I saw it myself.

Where have they replaced Kentias?

I've never seen either in Florida (houseplants don't count). I've only seen Kentias in CA.

[Patrick]

32 minutes ago, SeanK said:

Where have they replaced Kentias?

I've never seen either in Florida (houseplants don't count). I've only seen Kentias in CA.

I think that's what Jeff is talking about- houseplants. Kentias are so slow growing that they are expensive when you find them of a good size. Big box stores, selling on high volume and low prices find the Majesty to be a better fit since people are looking for cheap stuff and they can be grown up faster by the wholesaler. Speed is key. 

[Jeff zone 8 N.C.]

1 hour ago, SeanK said:

Where have they replaced Kentias?

I've never seen either in Florida (houseplants don't count). I've only seen Kentias in CA.

Patrick answered the question perfectly. Since the post originated from Florida I was answering from an east coast perspective. And yes it does count, in this case, because house plants and outside potted Kentias were exactly what I meant. Probably should have worded it so that was clear. 

Edited March 25, 2023 by Jeff zone 8 N.C.

[Silas_Sancona]

4 hours ago, Gottagrowemall said:

Okay so I live in Palm Coast FL and all the time I’ve been into palms and tropicals I’ve seen this majesty palms at garden centers and nurseries, HUGE dirt cheap. What is going on? These things are 6 feet tall sometimes for less than 20$. 
 

I planted one in the ground and it grew slowly in a partly shady area. For being root bound from the pot I thought it would take off. Handled the cold this year pretty well. I moved it to a sunnier spot and it’s doing okay but still growing SUPER slowly.

1.) Why don’t you see them used more in commercial planting or landscapes? 

2.) How fast do these grow from seed? If they’re retail 22$ then the wholesalers must be selling them for 4-8$ each.

3.) Are they even good as an indoor plant? I’ve seen a lot of people online say they always die or grow weird indoors.

To answer ?'s # 1 and 3,

#1: There are examples of Majestys being used in FL. commercially,  though they aren't used near as commonly as they could be..  Some look great, while others... ..several were planted in a ditch near where i used to live in Bradenton in a shopping center for example.. were stunted / sickly and are probably gone now. 

Being that they are water and fert. hogs, it is possible that -at least  in the case of many specimens casually plopped into many commercial landscape designs-, they aren't getting enough nutrition / are treated like ..say a Palmetto ...and left to fend for themselves after planting / are planted in the wrong place ( ..high and dry lets say ) rather than receiving proper care  ...and eventually are removed because of how awful they end up looking when not cared for.

#3:  Yes, for the reasons stated above, in many cases,  Majestys are perhaps the worst choice for indoor culture.  Kentias handle "life indoors / in a container "  better ..though i myself wouldn't keep one imprisioned indoors for very long. 

It can be done though, and i definitely give credit to those who have fantastic looking examples of indoor-grown specimens.

As shown by numerous PT members there in FL, ...and in CA,  plenty of examples of fantastic, perfectly content Majesty palms being grown outdoors.

[Fusca]

Due to the fact that they are SO widely available everywhere it seems to me that the seeds are easily germinated.  I've never seen a fruiting female palm in person (only in photos) and I've never seen seeds available for sale.  It seems that they produce in large quantities like Roystonia.  Like Jeff mentioned the growers are able to get them to a sellable size rather quickly or they wouldn't be so affordable.

Edited March 25, 2023 by Fusca

[Little Tex]

1 hour ago, Fusca said:

Due to the fact that they are SO widely available everywhere it seems to me that the seeds are easily germinated.  I've never seen a fruiting female palm in person (only in photos) and I've never seen seeds available for sale.  It seems that they produce in large quantities like Roystonia.  Like Jeff mentioned the growers are able to get them to a sellable size rather quickly or they wouldn't be so affordable.

Im honestly thinking about planting some in Rio Grande City, considering there are long term royals and foxtails.

[Palmfarmer]

13 hours ago, Patrick said:

I think that's what Jeff is talking about- houseplants. Kentias are so slow growing that they are expensive when you find them of a good size. Big box stores, selling on high volume and low prices find the Majesty to be a better fit since people are looking for cheap stuff and they can be grown up faster by the wholesaler. Speed is key. 

I find Majesties way slower than the Kentia I have under an overhang near my gate has more than doubled last 3 years. My 2 Majesty's (3 and 2 years) has barely done anything. Why is this? 

Do they take a Long time to get established? 

[aztropic]

1 hour ago, Palmfarmer said:

I find Majesties way slower than the Kentia I have under an overhang near my gate has more than doubled last 3 years. My 2 Majesty's (3 and 2 years) has barely done anything. Why is this? 

Do they take a Long time to get established? 

Not enough water! This species loves tons of water.

 

aztropic

Mesa, Arizona 

[Gottagrowemall]

16 hours ago, Silas_Sancona said:

To answer ?'s # 1 and 3,

#1: There are examples of Majestys being used in FL. commercially,  though they aren't used near as commonly as they could be..  Some look great, while others... ..several were planted in a ditch near where i used to live in Bradenton in a shopping center for example.. were stunted / sickly and are probably gone now. 

Being that they are water and fert. hogs, it is possible that -at least  in the case of many specimens casually plopped into many commercial landscape designs-, they aren't getting enough nutrition / are treated like ..say a Palmetto ...and left to fend for themselves after planting / are planted in the wrong place ( ..high and dry lets say ) rather than receiving proper care  ...and eventually are removed because of how awful they end up looking when not cared for.

#3:  Yes, for the reasons stated above, in many cases,  Majestys are perhaps the worst choice for indoor culture.  Kentias handle "life indoors / in a container "  better ..though i myself wouldn't keep one imprisioned indoors for very long. 

It can be done though, and i definitely give credit to those who have fantastic looking examples of indoor-grown specimens.

As shown by numerous PT members there in FL, ...and in CA,  plenty of examples of fantastic, perfectly content Majesty palms being grown outdoors.

So if someone wanted to grow this species outdoors, you could purchase one of these cheap plants and just make sure it’s being watered constantly and fertilized often? This is another topic but I’m kind of surprised I didn’t see any at Disney parks, Epcot animal kingdom, Jacksonville zoo etc. lots of mules

[Silas_Sancona]

3 hours ago, Gottagrowemall said:

So if someone wanted to grow this species outdoors, you could purchase one of these cheap plants and just make sure it’s being watered constantly and fertilized often? This is another topic but I’m kind of surprised I didn’t see any at Disney parks, Epcot animal kingdom, Jacksonville zoo etc. lots of mules

Yep... almost certain that is where a lot of Majestys originally came from.. 

Here's just a couple of the many Majesty Palm related discussion links through the years to check out if you haven't already..
 

 

 

As far a Jacksonville, could be it is too cold up there ...Shouldn't be...  Or ( more likely ) lack of planted specimens is just everyone that far north assumes they are indoor palms only.

[SeanK]

21 hours ago, Jeff zone 8 N.C. said:

Patrick answered the question perfectly. Since the post originated from Florida I was answering from an east coast perspective. And yes it does count, in this case, because house plants and outside potted Kentias were exactly what I meant. Probably should have worded it so that was clear. 

Thanks for clarifying. Majesties seem to languish even indoors. Spindles are a better choice along with Chamaedoreas and Rhapis.

Edited March 26, 2023 by SeanK

[SeanK]

19 minutes ago, Silas_Sancona said:

Yep... almost certain that is where a lot of Majestys originally came from.. 

Here's just a couple of the many Majesty Palm related discussion links through the years to check out if you haven't already..
 

 

 

As far a Jacksonville, could be it is too cold up there ...Shouldn't be...  Or ( more likely ) lack of planted specimens is just everyone that far north assumes they are indoor palms only.

This photo reminds me of the "sick" queens in another post. Someone suggested R.rivularis.

[PalmatierMeg]

My two majesties, planted circa 1993/4, are likely the healthiest and best looking in Cape Coral. We feed and water them regularly. All other majesties I’ve seen in yards looked awful and suffered lingering deaths from neglect. To be honest they are not particularly attractive palms here in SWFL, are not crownshafted so are ignored for self cleaning pinnate palms that wow visitors and palm ignorati. They are also slow growing. The majesties I see in photos taken in CA look better than ones in FL.

 Majesties are species that don’t take kindly to life as a houseplant. They want to be in the ground.

[Merlyn]

I guess it's because they grow fast from seed and then stretch out to huge fronds when grown in shade houses...also at a young age.  I bought a triple Majesty a few years ago and split it up into three.  In the ground they did okay in a PM shade area with drippers on them each day.  I moved two of them to a full shade area and they just languished and eventually I trashed them.  The other one went into the "tropical bed" area with lots of daily watering.  In full sun it just shrank to nothing and eventually died.  I haven't tried them since.

[Tyrone]

They come from river banks in the south of Madagascar and probably grow in acidic mud. If you try them in alkaline sand they will likely get all sorts of deficiencies and not thrive without copious irrigation and an intensive fertiliser regime. I grew a big one in my Perth garden on acidic sands and it was a thirsty hungry thing. I now grow them down on the south coast in what is a swampy area with acidic clay and peat and they just love it and are the fastest thing I’m growing and always green. They are constantly wet. So they really come from a certain niche in the environment growing along seasonally inundated river banks where Raphia would likely do well, and that’s where they are happiest. Anything less and they slow right down or are just nutrient deficient permanently. 

[ZPalms]

I wish I could have a majesty in ground, I really love those palms

Reminded me I was just looking around on google maps and this area in california seems to plant them a lot, I wonder how they got the one in the bottom photo to a darker green in full sun

Edited March 27, 2023 by ZPalms

[Palmfarmer]

On 3/26/2023 at 1:45 AM, aztropic said:

Not enough water! This species loves tons of water.

 

aztropic

Mesa, Arizona 

They are in clay. I know these palms can live in water, but I assume water with a lot of oxygen. Can I have them stand in water for a long time? 

Scared of root rot. Is it beneficial to water even more once I have saturated my clay soil with water? 

[Las Palmas Norte]

On 3/26/2023 at 2:22 PM, Merlyn said:

I guess it's because they grow fast from seed and then stretch out to huge fronds when grown in shade houses...also at a young age. ...

Indeed. I bought mine with fronds twice the length they are now. I repotted it (15 gal.) and it's adjusting nicely with new fronds.