Kentia Palm soil height help

[Dw1]

Hi everyone,

 

new here so sorry if this is in the wrong section.

 

four months (October here in syd, aus) ago I transplanted a mature kentia palm (about 2m of clear trunk). It lost a couple of fronds in the wind and it has paused the new fronds it was pushing out when it went in. I’m guessing it’s still putting energy into roots and staying alive after a transplant as it’s made no change all summer and it’s only got one good frond. 

 

today I noticed that while gardening around it a few months ago  I’ve inadvertently buried the trunk in another 5cm or so of soil (2inches). 
when I went to clear it I noticed it’s full of small, fine roots that appear to be new roots the palm has put out into this new soil.

 

my question is do I just leave it, not risk damaging these new roots, or should I clear this top soil and new roots to avoid risking the trunk rotting? 
 My understanding of palms was they don’t put new roots out off the larger established roots like other trees, so these roots are probably the only new roots it has been working on? 

Any help greatly appreciated

 

 

[Palmfarmer]

Do you have a photo? I have had some palms sink down around 5cm too. 

[Harry’s Palms]

You may already know , but Howea F.  are pretty forgiving . I would leave it for now until noticeable growth happens . Over here in Southern California they love water . So when I move them I usually soak the rootball overnight in my wheelbarrow with a muddy mix or top soil and water and cover with a canvas painters drop cloth. Then put them in the hole the next day. I was given six or seven large ones and only lost one . They seemed to show growth within a few months. These were moved over ten years ago. Harry

[Dw1]

Thanks everyone - it’s definitely battling so any tips would be greatly appreciated although all that new root growth in the top soil maybe means it’s doing ok still and just conserving any growing for the next spring/summer in another 5-6 months? Worried it will struggle through winter.

 

the most pulled back shot is how it looks now after losing two of its three fronds. Also a shot of the fronds it had when it went in around mid October. You can see it was working on three new ones when it was transplanted but it abruptly stopped pushing them out and they’re just stuck that way now. They haven’t died off or gone grey/yellow but they do mess each other up in the wind and they’re definitely getting a bit ratty and droopy now.

and I’ve just noticed - of the fronds it was pushing out but gave up on after the transplant 5 months ago, one of them is now dying off at its tips.. is this all normal or is that a sign of me doing something wrong here? 

I'm just watering it 2-3 times a week with 25mins of drip line (twisting around) , it’s in nice draining sandy soil (beachside location).

this past week, the sun no longer hits the soil at its base so I’ve just stepped it back to twice weekly @ 20 mins but the weather is still very warm here…

 

 

[Harry’s Palms]

If the feet are in good soil and it is kept damp , it will do the rest. It will either survive or not, you will know soon enough. The one I lost was treated exactly as the others , but just wasn't happy . Over here we rarely deal with trunk rot unless we do something obviously wrong like plant in an area with poor drainage and low light. If your palm is not in standing muck it should be OK. Clearing dead organic matter away from the base of the plant will help. At this point , in my experience , you have a better than 50% chance of success. When I got the group I have , the previous owner was going to cut them down so I decided to go for it . They looked almost like yours and made a surprising recovery , once new growth started. The first few fronds had "burnt" or brown tips , but got progressively better over time. They are beautiful palms , easy to grow , and worth the effort. You did well in planting it as far as I can tell.  Here's another picture of one of my
" gifts" , just for motivation. Harry