Dying foxtail palms. How can I tell if they’re dying

[RonH]

 

[DTS]

10 minutes ago, RonH said:

 

??? there's nothing here-

[RonH]

I wanted to know how to tell if my foxtail palms are dying

[SeanK]

16 minutes ago, RonH said:

I wanted to know how to tell if my foxtail palms are dying

Welcome aboard, Ron.

Not sure what would cause your suspicions. Please add a photo or two, uploaded from your phone or laptop. Explain some environmental things that have happened. Folks here are from all over the world (not just FL) so they're not quick to assume on events.

[RonH]

[RonH]

[Merlyn]

@RonH the last photo came through, it looks like it may have some hurricane damage to the growing point.  That's pretty common, especially with sustained cat2 winds.  There are three possible issues:

1. Physical damage to the growing point aka "bud" has broken the bud away from the trunk.  If that happens the palm will never grown another frond, and it'll eventually die as the older fronds age.
2. Damage to the new spears and existing fronds (like the left side one is bent in half) but the bud is still ok.  In this case the palm should grow new spears out of the center and eventually recover.  One possible problem is that the broken fronds could be in the way of the new spear growth, so pruning out the dead/broken ones may be a good idea.  If you do this use a clean loppers, and clean between each palm with isopropyl alcohol.  It's easy to transfer fungi from one palm to another.
3. Bud infection (usually fungal) after storms is fairly common.  This can also kill the bud if it's not treated.  My method is hydrogen peroxide (powerful antifungal for people or plants), followed by Daconil.  If there's signs of rot in the crown this has worked for me most of the time.  But you'd need to do it 2x to 3x per week until the H2O2 stops bubbling up on contact.  On a tall palm that's not easy.

With the height of those two it might not be easy to get up there to see.  I'd guess maybe a 10ft A-frame ladder *might* be tall enough, but you might need a tree service to get up there.

[Harry’s Palms]

It could be me but those look like Syagrus R. . I don’t see the crown shaft and the leaf tips are tapered , pointy. Harry

[aztropic]

Those palms in the picture are queen palms. It's been my experience that once they grow about 10 ft of clear trunk, that's when they really start to decline for various reasons,and are probably best removed and replaced.

 

aztropic 

Mesa, Arizona