Ravenea Species, Majestic Palm, Majesty Palm

In the big box stores, this is among the most commonly sold palm for use as a houseplant---not because it's suitable for growing as a hou...Read Moreseplant (it isn't!) but because it's easy and cheap for Florida nurseries to propagate and grow to a suitable size. I killed several before reading that its environmental requirements are not compatible with most homes.

About 18 years ago I planted the first Majestic palm at my home . It was what I believe, a new and untried species in the southern areas...Read More of Australia near Melbourne and they were grown in subtropical southern Queensland. Expecting It to die, all these years later it is a beautiful healthy plant with a trunk measuring 1.5 metres or just over 4 ft. A slow grower as in that time my Kentia palm has grown a trunk twice that size. I don't know what the climate zone is here but the winter nights rarely ever drop below 0 degrees C or 32 degrees F. The second plant is not sheltered from the winds and weather extremes as the first is and has been growing well for about 10 years and finally developing a trunk. Last summer for 4 days in a row the temperature reached more than 41 degrees C or about 106 degrees F with just a small amount of set back to the outer fronds. The Kentia and bangalow palms were scorched by the hot winds and the Norfolk palms were almost devastated but fortunately survived. If this helps, I have both majestic palms growing beside good size fish ponds and I use that water for the plants topping up the ponds when needed. Growing Majestics in a sheltered area near water seems to be helpful in colder climates. I have just purchased a different palm species from Madagascar ( Beccariphoenix Alfredii ). It was discovered in the mountains about 1000 ft. above sea level and resembles a coconut but is much more cold hardy than the Majestic. Probably slow growing but worth a try.

Bought one sickly majesty palm from Wal-Mart and nursed it back to health. It now has a nice and full appearance. The second one I bought...Read More, I cut one of the tallest stalks to make it symmetrical with the first palm on the other side of the patio. It didn't really seem to mind, as it just sprouted up two more long rods in place of the first one.

I planted these in large planters with cascading sweet potato vine to give it the appearance of having a skirt, as well as some mexican heather, caladiums and other little plants that matched well with it.

My only concern is that winter is approaching, so we'll have to see how it'll hold up. We should stick around in the 50s to 60s range of temperature at night, so I think I'll leave them out for a little bit longer.

At my old house I had a Majesty Palm that grew rather
slow. I moved to a new house and just planted a small
Majesty Palm. ...Read More Is there a way to make it grow faster. I hope that it can have a large trunk like some of the big
specimens have. Does anyone have any idea on how to
do this?

Thanks

At present time, this is the most common palm sold at retail in Southwest Florida. It is often sold as a container plant for patio or in...Read Moredoor use, where it does suffer as Palmbob noted 9 years ago.

If planted in the ground, it does much better in partial shade and it needs very regular fertilization to keep healthy. It is not one of my personal favorites.

Easily grown as a potted plant in my area. I bought it cheap from a garden center in 2007 and it struggled the first couple years until I...Read More researched soil composition. I stuck it into a decent self-irrigated pot with proper soil and it took off! Very fast grower that enjoys gallons of water per week and a quite a bit of fertilizer for the majority of the year. I bring mine indoors when the temperature is expected to drop below 35F and put it right back out at 40F. After this next year I don't think it will squeeze through the door any longer without damaging the spear so I'll have to find it a new home.

This is an easy and attractive palm to grow in the Sydney area, at least in coastal areas. It does tend to yellow if not looked after pro...Read Moreperly, but most plantings look good. It does grow quite large, so give it some room.

I love my majesty palm. (: It's my very first palm tree. I've had it for over a year. Recently repotted it in a much larger pot, and it'...Read Mores doing great. I overwintered it inside in front of a north-facing window for a little over 3 months. Probably watered it once every 2 weeks inside. Now it's outside in a shady, bright location. I water it every other day. These palms pretty much grow in swamps in their native Madagascar. Loves a lot of water when it's growing, especially during summer. Lots of fertilizer, too. I mist it frequently, and I always bring it inside once temperatures drop below, like, 42 degrees F. If night temperatures pretty much stay in the 50s or warmer, it stays outside. Unless it gets infested with bugs, or something, the only way it could die is if you don't properly take care of it.

I Bount this Plant back January, I wish I never did. No, Joke this was Going to be For my Bed Room. Since it was a Very nice 21C(73F for ...Read Moretwo weeks) I put it outside it got down to 60F(16C) first night it was doing ok. second night woke up and it was Turing brown so I watered it... it keeps getting worst off as it go. Am Just about to the Point of just Throwing it out.

Update: It Died and I Got the Dwarf One also... IT DIED ALSO!!! Forget this Palms. Am going to the Cold hardly Palms the ones I can Keep alive without doing that much!

I live in New Jersey,Two years ago a got two majesty palm,1 to 2 feet high.I keep them indoors all year. They are now 6 to 7 feet high. ...Read MoreThey get 4 hr`s of full sun each day. Yes you need to water every day,fertilize 2 times a year. I made my own fertilizer mix my self. Its seems they don`t like the main line brands.Any yellow or brown leaves cut right away. If the leaves are not total dead or brown cut below that area.If it con`t to brown cut at the base 1 inch from the trunk. any-one who like to know my palm fertilizer mix ,please write- will reply

love this palm. i have 5 of them, all from lowes. 1 is about 2 feet tall. 2 more are about 7 feet tall. and i bought the other 2, which a...Read Morere also about 7 feet tall, on clearance for $3 each. they have about 1 to 2 leaves each. they make excellent house plants as long as you provide it daily waterings and the humidity in the room is at least 70%. They really don't need any light as long as they have those two things. the only problem is they grow very big quite fast.

This winter in Houston we had unusually low temps, reaching 18 deg for 4 hours, and this killed the beautiful majesty palm we had growing...Read More at our entrance. My wife however insists on another :)

I live in the Pocono Mountains of Northeastern Pennsylvania-- a place and climate much different than any of the regions posted here. I p...Read Moreurchased four larger and two smaller potted Majestics as a Mother's Day gift for my wife. They are used as ornamental pieces and adorned our inground pool area all summer. They really transformed our home's outdoor living area into a paradise and our friends and visitors frequently comment on the resort-type feel the palms provide. I repotted them in larger pots and they thrived well from May thru most of September, and I moved them inside prior to the first frost. Given my unique circumstances, I am going to attempt to "winter" them in my basement using flourescent grow lights. I purchased four shop-light fixtures, and plan to use a variety of lamp types to get the broadest range of wavelengths. I also plan on using timers to provide consistent intervals of light, simulating day/night cycles. I'll use 14 hours of light, and see how that works. I haven't been able to find any guidelines to go on, so any advice any of you can provide would be most appreciated. Maybe I'm just chasing rainbows, but I really want to save something that gives us so much pleasure. I'll post pictures if they survive.

i found out the secret too growing this beuty! YOU MUST NOT ALLOW THIS PLANT TOO DRY OUT or it is sure too die you see this plant is nat...Read Moreive too a rainforest so you must keep moist allways and do not exspose it too full sun or it will fry also it grows fast and easily if you keep moist so follow this rule! i have a huge 20 foot indoor majesty

I need to know what these strange bugs are that have inhabited my plant... when I water it there are little white milapeeds that come out...Read More of the soil... I live in the north west and it stands about seven feet and faces the east window... I just don't know what to do.. The color is good but yes the frongs get yellow on the tips... PLEASE HELP

The info here is quite helpful. The info sheet I got with my palm said to let it dry out between waterings and I have been doing that, b...Read Moreut it isnt fairning as well as I think it should. I'm going to start keeping it more consistently moist!

many stores such as wallmart sell these palms as a kentia look a-like. the truth is, kentias are much better indoor palms than the majest...Read Morey palm. majestys need alot of water and part- full sun, not low light, and a "forget about me, i'll be fine" attitude. growing one of these requires a close eye, and experience. i have killed 8 palms so far, and my only "succes" is starting to decline, and is infested with scale and mites, i can only hope that fast growth and sunny warm temps. will bring it back to its former glory. last summer i set it in the ground, and it rewarded me with fast growth. now im dealing with bleeching and dieing fronds.
spring better come soon :)

well here is a surprize.... it died, but because they are so cheep, i might go and kill another one, lol.

I've had a nice 3' 4 stalk Majesty Palm for about a year and a half, in a 8 gallon hemp pot. I've kept it inside in an east-facing wind...Read Moreow 100% of the time and it's done fine. Just recently though it's seemed to be going to " two directions " for some reason !!
The plant is suddenly throwing frons out like CRAZY out the top and looking wonderful from that perspective.
But at the same time, the general color of the thing has seemed to faded to 'lime green' from the nicer shade it had earlier, and also the older frons at the bottom are suddenly in decline.
I use an 8-7-6 liquid Miracle Gro fertilizer w / .10% iron with every watering, every 2 weeks.
What am I doing wrong?
Do these things need ACID amendmends to the soil, maybe?

I have 2 potted Majesty Palms that I move indoors in winter. They need bright light through the winter to look their best come spring. ...Read MoreWhile indoors I water them thoroughly once a week, but in summer I water them every day unless it rains. In winter I put them in front of a window that gives them direct sunlight. In summer I put them under some of my large oak trees with lots of filtered light and they do great. I've had them 4 years now and they grow slowly but have remained healthy. I trim off fronds when they begin to lean out too far. I prefer the upright look anyway.

Photo posted.

For all it's fame as a inexpensive feathery potted palm,it really does poorly in a pot. Majesty's dont take to being kept potted in the s...Read Moreame way of a Howea or Rhapsis. A Majesty palm will only put up with a few years at best in a pot before the stunting starts a slow decline. That is why you don't see large Majestys for sale .At least not large ones in ordinary sized containers-say under 24". You can find many species of palm with trunks in manageable pots-Majesty isn't one of them. Mine in ten years has twice had crown rot and this year finally died from the cold when all others-including a in ground Majesty,did well.
If you really want a long term potted palm don't waste time on this one when so many others are better suited for the potted life.You get what you pay for.

in the lowcountry of SC it is very common to see people that have this palm planted outside in the ground it performs well in the summer,...Read More but in the winter it is defoliated, but soon recovers. I am not sure as to if they will ever get tall or mature, but other than the defoliation, they do well here
***UPDATE***
On Hilton Head Island, which is just acoss the bridge fom us, they do well, usually flying thru winter with no problems. still no trunk on these, but a full crown of leaves, and it seems like we'll see some trunk in a year or two

In Saratoga, CA, this palm has faired well through several winters, albeit in a partially canopied sun exposure. We typically have perha...Read Moreps 10 winter night time freezes, typically into the high 20s perhaps every decade to the low 20s or even teens. I cheated this winter (teens 2 consecutive nights) by covering it with a tarp, but the palm has faired surprisingly well.

We live in Houston, Texas and have had our palm for 3 years. It is doing great and is growing very fast. We wrap it if we ever have nig...Read Morehts that drop below 32 degrees and have had no problem keeping the palm

This palm is "bulletproof" in Florida. Dig a hole, water occasionally, and fertilize infrequently. There is nothing you need to know to...Read More grow this species without any real concern. It is overplanted perhaps, and somewhat ordinary, but for places like California, where there are fewer options, it is no doubt a winner.

This one is very attractive, but demanding when grown in containers! My experience with this devil: I bought one two years ago at Lowes...Read More. It didn't do well the first winter. I had it in a south facing window, well watered and it got horribly infested with mites. From what I hear, this is quite common. The combination of low winter light levels, low humidity and mites nearly got this one. Soap insecticide was the only thing that worked on those bugs, and it did great over the summer on my deck in full sun(sunrise to sunset), 85+ temps, high humidity. We've since put in a whole house humidifier, and I've kept a tray full of water/rocks under the pot for a little extra humidity this winter and it's doing MUCH better. Oh, and I also used a tropical plant mix when repotting instead of the miraclegro with moisture retention that I started with. Definitely worth it if you've got the time to baby it, otherwise go find a different palm for indoors!

Grows great in zone 9b with care. Just need a small fan on occasions when it frosts or else some of the frons will get damaged. In a area...Read More where it frosts regularly you might not want to grow it outside. For darker frons it must be in the shade or it will lighten up in the sun. I have found that this plant does well under moist conditons. So keep its roots moist. In this climate it took a couple of years untill it acclimated. So don't be discourage if it looks pretty bad the first couple of winters.

Bought a small one cheap at the depot and planted it in the shade of
the house. Had an ice storm that seem to hurt it. It took a...Read More year off from growing but came back strong this year.

Give this palm as much water as you can, and make sure the soil is always wet, unless you are growing it in SAn Francisco. These palms ca...Read Moren survive the whack freezes Florida gets every once in a while, so you can plant them all the way up to Orlando, and perhaps Jacksonville, and not have to worry about it dieing. There are some growing in teh worst microlimcates in San Fransisco, and survive. BUt if you want your palm to be green and robust, give it water all the time. It is a semi aquatic palm, and could actually be planted with its trunk partially submerged in water.

Bought this as a houseplant from the local Walmart....since then it is slowly declining in health....yellow leaves, etc. I'm going to pl...Read Moreace it outside this summer to see if that helps...the notes about the need for water and lower light are very helpful.

Saw one growing in 9A.

This is one of the most commonly sold 'house palms' nowadays, and the sad thing is it performs terribly as one. It is a great outdoor pl...Read Moreant, though in the continental US it's a bit hard to keep from yellowing at the tips, especially if planted in full sun. It is a relatively fast palm for Southern California, and grows faster the more heat and water it gets. It eventually grows to 50' or more in the US, but in Madagascar, it's home, it can get up to nearly 100'. As the name suggests, it grows along rivers and loves to have its roots constantly moist. The only major dangers to this palm are cold (can't handle temps below the mid 20sF) and snails LOVE it, and will quickly shred the leaves to bits. Watering the crown, particulaly in the cooler months of the year, and especially the cool months to warm month period, is risky (though rain water seems to be OK... tap water is the problem). Rot/bud damage is very common in this species, at it is in many of the non-crownshafted feather-leaf palms, from tap water on the crowns ANY time of the year... but mostly in late winter/spring, as the palm starts to grow again... so if you plant this palm in your lawn, try to avoid having the sprinkler hit the crown. It is nearly impossible to overwater the roots of this plant (unless maybe planted in a very heavy clay soil)... but the crown is very sensitive to being 'overwatered'. I can't tell you how often i see this happen around southern California (and happened to several of my own palms)... live and learn.