Hello
As my potted palm collection is growing at an alarming rate, I thought I would see what I could start from my own garden. Most of the raphis have small pups that seem to be growing away from the main plant but favorite has a pup/off shoot and i was wondering how do I go about removing it and propagating a new tree. it seems to be growing a little bunch of stems all attached to the main trunk just below the mulch and soil. Here's a picture of what I found today.
This is the main tree ( sorry about the angle)
............and here it is 3 years ago when it was planted. I didn't know much about tropical palms and plants then and I was told it was a triangle palm at the time, but it doesn't look like one to me. If anybody could ID it I'd be very grateful.
It's quite a trip when you see how much your garden has matured when you go back through your photos.
Well, not sure exactly what species that is, but guessing it's a Dypsis madagascariensis... they do grow tristichously (having 3 ranks of leaves like a triangle palm, and closely related to one, too)... but that is NOT a triangle palm. Great looking palm, though. As for the seedlings, just carefully dig them out and plant them in potting soil. In your climate, should do great!
Thank you,
Now I'm off to hunt down more information.....the fun part for me !
Do I actually dig them out of the Palm Tree trunk, taking part of it with the pup, or do I find where they attatch and just snip them and then pot and wait for roots ?
They shouldn't actually be growing out of the trunk... are they? That would make taking them a LOT more difficult. It might also change my guess at what species that is. If there are a lot, you should carefully try to dig one out and see if it has roots.. if not, then that is a truly suckering palm and you are gonna have a hard time getting the little 'suckers' to grow separately for you.
I thought they were, but I'll do a little more investigating tomorrow . Here's a picture of my Triangle palm which I now know is called a Dypsis Decaryi, It's about two-three years old now. its ready for a new pot but Im not.
I still can't tell if they are attached or not because as I got closer I realized that they were growing out of a root prison. I gave the worst looking of the three a good yank and it broke away with out any roots.
Here's a picture of the root prison.
Do you think its worth cutting a couple of the main roots to get at them. Wer'e sellin this house and although I'm sorry to loose my garden and a lot of my plants it would be nice to take some part of it with me.
This is the seedling that broke away with no roots. If i plant it like a regular cutting using hormone, will it be able to root?
I seriously doubt your unrooted seedling will survive no matter what... but those other seedlings look like seedlings, not suckers... only problem is getting them out of there (you need to get the roots, too).. I see that the large palm has stilt roots? I am curious as to what it is again... impressive plant. Seedlings are highly colorful. Try to get another photo of this palm from a distance, and then of the crownshaft, and then of the base of the trunk.
It's pretty much impossible to get a clear picture from a distance but here's the best shots I could get. I merged two to make this one.
And the trunk
OK, I am going to my original guess of Dypsis madagascariensis... which CAN sucker... Have you ever seen seed formed on this tree? If not, then perhaps those are true suckers, in which case I doubt you will be able to grow more trees from them... at least not for 3-5 years until they have their own root supplies... and then I wouldn't really know how to tell you to go about separating them having never done that myself.
Cheers PB
I dont seem to remember any seeds, but that's not to say there weren't any, I wasn't paying much attention to palms untill I found this site. I'm going to tie back the vicious bromiliad that's guarding them tomorrow and get down to some micro surgery. Ill see how far I can see between those roots.
Meanwhile, I'm now checking out palms all over the Island and looking for cool ones.
I saved a seedling today from an Island Hotel Maintenance crew that were about to attack it. I peeled off a couple of the outer withering leaves and realised that each successive frond/leaf ? had more splits, 1-2 and 3. the ones on it at the moment go 3, 5 and 10 with a new one coming up. I find the growth patterns fascination to follow.
I'm not sure what kind the parent it s but its elegant and tall singlular, with a crown of tight bushy green fans fronds on top and the chopped frond style trunk most of the way up as opposed to the smooth ringed type (terminoligy? ) . I'll see if i can get a picture on my bike ride to work. And see if theres any others around. Most of the hotels have just installed new expensive palms since Wilma . Maybe I can build up a little trading stock.
I try to get a pic tomorrow on my ride to work. And got some seeds from another cooll one tonight while I was walking the dog.
Plam Bob wrote
"I see that the large palm has stilt roots? "
In case anybody else was wondering what that meant like me, here's an extreme example
http://www.botgard.ucla.edu/html/botanytextbooks/generalbotany/typesofroots/a1147tx.html
You are lucky in that, except for Hawaii, you can grow more species of palms where you live than anywhere else in the US. Hope you don't get too enthusiastic about palm growing or your place will be a solid wall of palms before long.
I can't help myself, I love watching them grow ( Slowly)
Well the suckers are suckers, I got up early before going to work and got way down there to where they were attached. I pulled another off and maybe Ill try to get some roots going.
