To start with, numerous palm tree sizes exist. There are the small ones, the ordinary ones, and the ridiculously tall ones. The tallest palm trees recorded in suburbia were over 65+ meters (or 200+ feet) in height. And understandably, various palm tree species have varying maximum heights.
So, to be safe, do your initial strategy by going with planting the dwarf varieties of palm trees, as this is the surest method to avoid ending up with a tree that towers over the rest of the neighbourhood. Which means you won’t have to be concerned about stunting the growth of a mature palm tree, true?
As said, the best solution is in the initial selection of the appropriate kind of palm tree for your purpose.
This is by far the simplest and best approach to control the size of the tree. As such a miniature palm that
can grow to the height you want is a good option. The Licuala palm and dwarf palmetto are good options,
and then the parlour palm holds the distinction of being the worlds smallest palm species. Additional
types of little palms can be seen at your neighbourhood nursery. Ask them for their professional opinion.
With the many different palm species, they can be as small as 1 meter (3 feet) tall all the way up to over
65+ meters (or 200+ feet) tall. And if you are at the point of dealing with a mature tall palm; well then you
have some work ahead of you to stunt or slow the palm’s growth…
And as a very important point, you don’t ever over trim a palm’s fronds or cut-back its roots as it can cause
irreparable damage to the palm, leading to its eventual death. Which means that you definitely don’t want
to compromise your mature palm tree’s health by cutting off its growth completely, do you?
Trim In A “Hurricane Cutting” Style
As an option, the palm fronds could be trimmed in a “hurricane cutting” style. Remove dead brown fronds
as well as most of the good green fronds, leaving just the strongest and healthiest fronds on the palm.
And here’s the caution. Your palm tree’s growth will be stunted and it will be more susceptible to illnesses
if you excessively prune it in this manner. Extensive cutting of trunk tissue will weaken it. This technique,
referred to as “hurricane cutting” will mostly also leave your tree too frail to withstand severe weather.
Why Prevent Palm Trees From Becoming Tall?
Now this can be very subjective and also revolves around personal taste and commercial requirements…
For The Sake Of Beauty – The height of a palm tree can be unnecessary for the aesthetic value it provides;
hence some individuals choose to cultivate them just because they look ‘nice’.
Keep Personal Space – You may notice that your palm tree is growing into yours or other people’s personal
space if you let it reach its full height potential. Then there are the potential regular (unwanted) complaints
from neighbours about discarded fronds or pests drawn to fallen fruit is something no one wants to hear.
Preventing A Palm Tree From Growing Taller
Plant A Short Palm Tree – Cultivate a short palm species. Find out if the palm you want to buy comes from
a short or tall species. Note: Interfering with a palm’s development could have disastrous results. Instead
of slowing down, it might just perish.
Removal Of The Palm Tree – having your palm professionally removed permanently (and unfortunately
dumped) or, transplanted to another place is also an option that will give your palm another life.
Palms Can Be Trimmed Down – as said before, your palm can be trimmed down using the hurricane cutting
technique, which is a special type of tree trimming. The result; it may stop growing altogether. Remove old,
brown palm leaves; also completely remove greenish fronds as much of you can. Keep the palm topped
with just a handful of green fronds. Constant trimming or pruning of a palm tree will stunt its development.
Pruning a palm presents a number of difficulties; the palm is more susceptible to diseases and prolonged
pruning will weaken the trunk of a palm tree which may cause it to be blown over by a severe windstorm.
Additional Flowers And Fruits – Energy required for palms to grow tall is the same energy for it to bear
fruit. So, encourage the tree’s energy to be directed towards fruit production, it’ll keep its height in check.
Root Manipulation – Growth of a palm can be stopped by manipulating its roots; yet it’s only a stop-gap
measure. In spring use a wooden stick to scrape away dry earth at the base of your palm tree. Or cut down
palm growth by trimming its roots. Remove massive roots and keep only the tendrils. After this, give your
palm 7 days to recover by burying its roots in the ground. It may take up to 30+ days for your palm tree to
resume growth after this procedure is performed.
What Should Be Done If Your Palm Grows Too Tall?
Palms, unlike most plants, cannot be clipped to limit their height; hence certain varieties can get quite tall.
Palm Are Distinct Trees – Understand that approximately 3,000+ species and over 200+ different genera
make up the palm tree family. And that the trunks of palm trees are actually the stems from which new
leaves, blooms, and buds develop. When fronds, or leaves, are ready, they uncurl from the crown. As such,
if you chop off of the top of a palm tree, you are removing the fronds and, more importantly, the new bud,
leaving behind nothing but a towering, bare stump, which eventually dies.
Commercial Situations – So, it’s impossible to prune a palm down to size. Unfortunately when tall outside
palms are threats to electricity lines or other overheads they require expert tree service and or removal.
Palm Pruning – Most palms won’t survive if the whole crown is cut off. But you can still prune a portion of
fronds and they’ll continue to thrive; remember they need leaves for photosynthesis, so, removing them is
a last resort. Fronds best removed by snipping above where they join the trunk, yet unless leaves are fully
dead, discoloured, or damaged, best not to prune. If a palm tree has only a few leaves left and they’re all
damaged, you should still leave them where they are.
Select A Smaller Palm – Yes, as always, the best and simplest way is growing or planting a ‘dwarf palm’. It’s
probably the best, easiest and greatest (and slowest) strategy to keep a palm without outgrowing its space.
Palm Trees In Pots – In pots you can bring palm indoors during winter. Keeping in containers, choosing a
smaller, slower-growing species, you can inhibit growth. Replant potted palms 3 to 4 years into larger
containers > 5mm (2 inches) wider, with new potting mix in same depth as before. Roots should be pruned
as necessary with sterile scissors/pruners by re-potting into same or smaller container to halt palm growth.
Never take off more of the root system than is absolutely necessary to protect the tree.
Outdoor Palm Trees – If you have an outside palm and want to slow its growth, you should know that you
may be doing it more harm than good. Removing your palm and replace it with one of a reduced natural
size if it has outgrown its current location maybe the best alternative.
Keep Up Palm Maintenance – Either once or twice a year, tidy up your palm tree by removing all flowers
and fruits and by trimming away any dead fronds. Some palm trees contain sharp, saw-toothed branches
and spines; use caution and wear protective eyewear and gloves when you work on them. Also seriously
consider help from a professional tree service if you’re dealing with such a tall palm tree.
Conclusion
The tallest palm trees ever recorded in suburbia were purportedly in Florida. Be aware that different palm
trees grow at different heights, so your initial selection is an important factor. And the alternatives with a
mature palm are cutting fronds or roots, which can permanently destroy a tree. And then a lot of trunk
removal weakens it. The extreme solution is to completely remove the palm and replace it with a more
suitable species. Yet despite you contending with their unnecessary height, some individuals deliberately
cultivate palm palms for their beauty.
And then if you prune your palm tree too much, it may grow slower and be more disease prone. Another
solution is by leaving only a little tuft of green palm fronds at the treetop. This constant pruning stunts
palm tree growth. Then you have the ‘springtime brushes’ of dry soil around your palm tree’s base with a
wooden stick. Palm tree trunks sprout leaves, blooms, and buds.
Professional tree services must remove towering palms that risk power wires or overhead hazards. Topping
a palm tree slows development; yet destroying trunks or roots kills it. If the palm is too big for its location,
either have it professionally removed to a new site, or alternatively just cut it down/dispose and replace it.
For you it may be best to receive an obligation free estimate of what can be done for your palm tree.
As such, ABC Palms invites you to contact us at inquiries@abcpalms.com or call on 0477 002 110 for your
free no-obligation assessment and quote.
