Should I put it on a bigger pot?

[Brandon39.5]

Hi, I've germinated a wodyetia bifurcata (foxtail palm) one and half year ago, but i'ts on a pot, not too big but not too small and the soil is not very good it contains too much moist in the soil, and i'm worried because I don't want it to get root rot. Should I put it on a bigger pot with a more sandy soil with some compost and better drainage? On the winter I have the palm on a little glass greenhouse.

I would appreciate a lot your replies.

Edited July 8, 2023 by Brandon39.5

[Fusca]

I would continue to use the same pot but replace the medium for better drainage.  Potting in too large a pot can make it more difficult to control the amount of moisture.  Most palms grow happily in tiny pots.  When roots begin coming out of the drainage holes is a good indicator of when to pot up to a deeper container.  Seedling looks very good! 

[Brandon39.5]

30 minutes ago, Fusca said:

I would continue to use the same pot but replace the medium for better drainage.  Potting in too large a pot can make it more difficult to control the amount of moisture.  Most palms grow happily in tiny pots.  When roots begin coming out of the drainage holes is a good indicator of when to pot up to a deeper container.  Seedling looks very good! 

Okay, thank ou for the reply. So, you are saying that I should replace the soil from the pot that I already have with better rich soil with better drainage, right? what's the best soil mix for palm seedlings? would the palm get transplant shock? Becasue i want the palm to grow this summer. Sorry for this many questions but I'm pretty new to this palm tree hobby.

[Fusca]

38 minutes ago, Brandon39.5 said:

Okay, thank ou for the reply. So, you are saying that I should replace the soil from the pot that I already have with better rich soil with better drainage, right? what's the best soil mix for palm seedlings? would the palm get transplant shock? Becasue i want the palm to grow this summer. Sorry for this many questions but I'm pretty new to this palm tree hobby.

No problem.  If your palm's soil doesn't drain well it would benefit from some amending at least.  Simply replacing some of the soil with perlite, Seramis, coco coir or chicken grit will improve the drainage.  The palm shouldn't suffer any shock as long as it receives adequate watering.  You will need to water more often with rapid draining soil.

Many of my palm seedlings suffered or died outright due to using poor draining soil before I joined this forum several years ago.  I also tended to use too large of a container as well.  There's plenty of threads here regarding soil mixes.  I mix my own using slight variations depending on the species.  Here's a recent thread that addresses your question:

Best of luck with your Wodyetia!

[Brandon39.5]

17 hours ago, Fusca said:

No problem.  If your palm's soil doesn't drain well it would benefit from some amending at least.  Simply replacing some of the soil with perlite, Seramis, coco coir or chicken grit will improve the drainage.  The palm shouldn't suffer any shock as long as it receives adequate watering.  You will need to water more often with rapid draining soil.

Many of my palm seedlings suffered or died outright due to using poor draining soil before I joined this forum several years ago.  I also tended to use too large of a container as well.  There's plenty of threads here regarding soil mixes.  I mix my own using slight variations depending on the species.  Here's a recent thread that addresses your question:

Best of luck with your Wodyetia!

Okay thank you for the reply, I'm gonna use the same pot, but I'm gonna put more soil on the pot because I've noticed som roots coming out from the drainage holes so it's time to transplant it. on my expirience, deep but thin pots work pretty well atleast for my bismarckias. I'm going to use 50% coco coir / 20% river sand / 20% Compost / 10% volcanic rock. I'm gonna remove all of the old soil because it keeps too much moisture. how much do I have to wait from trhe transplant till I can fertilize the palm?

[Fusca]

On 7/9/2023 at 8:31 AM, Brandon39.5 said:

I'm going to use 50% coco coir / 20% river sand / 20% Compost / 10% volcanic rock. I'm gonna remove all of the old soil because it keeps too much moisture. how much do I have to wait from trhe transplant till I can fertilize the palm?

That sounds like a pretty good mix although I've read where some have had poor results using compost in containers.  I would think that it would be OK as long as it is fully composted and not just "compostable organic material."  I don't have much experience fertilizing seedlings in containers.  I typically just use fish emulsion and liquid kelp.  I've never used any chemical fertilizer in containers but others have done it successfully so hopefully someone will advise.

[Brandon39.5]

8 minutes ago, Fusca said:

That sounds like a pretty good mix although I've read where some have had poor results using compost in containers.  I would think that it would be OK as long as it is fully composted and not just "compostable organic material."  I don't have much experience fertilizing seedlings in containers.  I typically just use fish emulsion and liquid kelp.  I've never used any chemical fertilizer in containers but others have done it successfully so hopefully someone will advise.

Im just gonna use 70% coco coir and 30% river sand I dont want to do any experiment with compost because is my first tropical palm seedling and I don't want experiment with it.

[Brandon39.5]

I've just did the soil change. This is the mix that I used: 60% coco coir/ 20% river sand/ 20% compost. I've planted the seedling higher because the roots where starting to come out from the drainage holes. the roots where looking extremely healthy.