Growing Palms in Containers

Q. I have 11-year-old, 4-foot tall palm trees that are in 25- or 30-gallon pots in my backyard that get direct sunlight every day. What kind of watering cycle should they be getting during the hot summer and throughout the year? Also, what kind of nutrients should I be adding to them and how often?

Even though not really a palm, sago palm or cycad makes a great container plant.

A. Containers will dry out faster on the south and west sides if they are in full sun. Those sides of the container are notorious for getting super hot and killing roots. Shading the container or putting the existing container in a second, but larger container, prevents that.

Note: windmill palm and pygmy date palm make great container palms!

Watering Plants

            Always water in the morning before it gets hot. How much and how often to apply water depends on the soil in the container. Buy an inexpensive moisture meter used for monitoring houseplants to gauge when to water again. Push the tip of the moisture meter in the soil about four inches deep. Do this in three different spots so you can get an average reading. When the average reading is near 5, water again.

Inexpensive moisture sensor for houseplants does a pretty good job telling you how wet or dry the soil is.

Fertilizing Plants

Fertilize container plants more often than plants growing in the ground. The application frequency varies from once a month to three or four times a year. The same amount is applied over the course of a year, but the amount applied each time is split into monthly or quarterly applications. The best way to judge when an application of fertilizer is needed is using leaf color and plant growth as indicators. Plants with enough fertilizer are dark green and have strong growth.  

Controlling Soil Salts

            When you water, a little bit should always come out the bottom of the container. This helps remove salts that might otherwise accumulate in the soil. Apply fertilizer after every 40 waterings.