Pruning advice for a California Fan Palm
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- čas přidán 25. 10. 2015
- Here is a mature Washingtonia filifera that we are about to prune - we discuss some issues & concerns regarding improper pruning and demonstrate how this palm should look when finished & why. These can reach 60' in height but are susceptible to several fungal diseases (such as diamond scale & pink rot besides the ones mentioned in the video). Its close relative, the Mexican Fan Palm, is much more disease resistant.
Thanks so much I have been telling my wife it's not good for the health of the palm tree to over prune. Now I have a professional backing me up. Shukran
All great facts thanks for sharing :)
+juan arcos Thank you very much! I encourage folks to fact-check anything I say when working or submitting bids at www.treesaregood.org or the UF-IFIS website. These great palms are disappearing by the thousands in FLORIDA every year.
The problem with these other companies where I am always do "hurricane pruning" and it is really bad more companies should prune them this way.
Definitely! Companies actually ruin their repeat business by causing their palms to die & fail prematurely! Often when someone else has been pruning a complex, the owner will call us up to find out the issue & then replace their current provider since they either didn't know or didn't care. We do our best to inform other companies of proper care but our oldest, biggest & richest tree co's in the area LOVE to damage trees/palms so they can get the call back to remove. SMH.
Where did u spray the simple green? Also if the fans are brown on the edges do you recommend trimming the brown areas off? I’m in NC bad winter my beautiful palm is not so pretty anymore. We removed all the dead and really drooping palms....
Hey Suzanne, the simple green is actually sprayed on the saw itself. As I mentioned, it's not a full proof method but it at least helps. The ISA recommends equipment is disassembled & soaked in bleach! But who has time for that LOL plus bleach is way more corrosive so we've had great success with the Simple Green & since it's inexpensive, we can spray generously between each palm. It's all about how many green fronds are on the palm - if you have a struggling or declining palm, it may not have enough green fronds to even remove one! Opposed to a vigorous palm with countless green fronds lining the trunk. Here's a good generic rule of thumb you can apply: If it's green, let it be. If it's yellow, let it "mellow" & if it's brown, CUT IT DOWN. Of course from a commercial maintenance aspect, your goal is to blend your customer's expectations with the proper care so removing a few green fronds with a sterile saw won't hurt most healthy palms. Now self-cleaning & sensitive varieties like Fox Tails, Royals & Bismarks are a completely different story.Stay safe!
Mexican Fan (Washingtonia Robusta) or a California Fan (Washingtonia Filifera)??? As stated below, Mex. Fans are in fact slimmer & do grow taller, whereas Cali's are thicker, with wider trunks & not quite as tall. However, here in central FL many of our Cali's end up resembling Mexican Fan's due to nurseries planting these WAY to close together in the fields, so they are competing for sunlight & grow TALLER & slimmer (faster) than their usual growth rate. Then the plant repeats the growth memory that it's been trained to have it's entire life. I completely undertand if perhaps Mickey & Carwin's experience elsewhere doesn't reflect this. Nevertheless Mex. fans around here are WAY slimmer than these at this complex & look so thin, it's hard to believe they're standing (same result from nurseries over populating the fields leading this these characteristics). This in fact can happen to any species, palm or trees or even shrubs. Buyer beware LOL.The major characteristic revealing what these are is the Hastate (where the petiole stem meets the leafy part) - it is longer & more pointed on Cali's, unlike the Mex. fan where it's shorter. If you notice that part of the frond during different clips it appears obvious to me & the certified arborist on our staff that these are in fact Cali's. Also notice the leaf tips, how far cut out & "floppy" they are opposed to how rigid they typically are on Mex. fans. Now if you want to debate that these are actually the Cali-Mex hybrid, Washingtonia Filibusta, that may be a real possibility as they too are present in our region.Regarding a pruning season for palms as mentioned by Carwin, it's recommended that they're pruned annually or biannually. We have found our timing to be best in Spring & Fall, when the humidity is lower & the extreme heat isn't present (therefore protecting the health). Seed pods can open here in central FL two to three times each year, not just once (probably because of the nearly year-round summer). For more great info on proper pruning I encourage everyone to visit www.treesaregood.org/portals/0/docs/treecare/palms.pdf. It will provide a good foundation for learning & proper pruning, which is always the goal. Happy pruning folks!
I’m pretty sure that’s a Mexican fan palm
Thanks for watching & your interest in proper pruning! I understand your premise but still believe they are Cali's & go in depth in another comment. Stay safe!
Not a filifera, but robusta.
Not a California palm, California palms are a lot fatter. That’s a Mexican fan palm. A landscaper knows his trees...
Thanks for watching & your interest in proper pruning! I understand your premise but still believe they are Cali's & go in depth in another comment. Stay safe!
C-Jones Lawn & Tree you do the same man.
Just send it back to California