lack of water – Xtremehorticulture

Queen Palm Damaged From Irrigation Problem

Leave a Comment / drought queen palm, lack of water, queen palm brown / xtremehorticulture

Q. During the excessive hot spell our irrigation failed while we were out of town. As a result, one of our queen palms lost all its branches. In spite of subsequent life support efforts it does not appear to be coming back. Is that too much to hope for? Is there anything we can do to help it recover or should we just mourn its passing? If so, what do you recommend we replace it with that has similar height and shade? The remaining queen palms will be wrapped for winter to keep them alive. A. They can normally handle the heat but if they are stressed, and that will happen to that plant in this environment, this could contribute to decline enough so that other factors take over and cause its death. I am sure it was not from the heat directly, but perhaps indirectly when we take into account other things that can be problems. I know it is too late for you but I would generally not recommend queen palms for our Valley. They just end up looking very anemic except in some very protected locations away from hot dry winds. If you are looking for something erect than you might look more closely at date palms Canary Island date palms. They are slow growing but can give some shade. Normally you should not have to wrap queen palms here. Wrapping the trunk may not give you a lot of protection. The central bud at the very top of the tree where the fronds come from is a major determinant if the tree will survive. If that central bud at the top of the tree dies, the palm dies. The trunk can handle a little bit of damage but not the central bud. Some people claim that putting Christmas tree lights around the trunk help some plants. I have never verified this.

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Vitex Water Management Affects Blooms and Growth

14 Comments / drought, lack of water, no flowers, thin canopy, too much water, vitex / xtremehorticulture

Q. I have a Chaste tree that has been growing in my backyard for about seven years. The branches have always been full of leaves and I would get an abundance of beautiful purple blooms. Last spring, I noticed there were not as many leaves and I would only get purple flowers here and there. This spring again the leaves are sparse and the branches are mostly bare. Should I be doing something extra to bring back the lushness of my Chaste tree? A. Vitex, or chaste tree, is relatively pest free. It originates from the Mediterranean region where the summers are usually hot and dry and the winters cool to cold and wet. Vitex in winter The only real problems the plant has are if the roots remain too wet or the plant doesn’t get enough water. So my reaction to your question was concern about your irrigation practices; either watering it too often or not giving it enough water when you do irrigate. Both could cause similar problems. If the roots stay too wet, root rots develop and you might see a thinning of the canopy and branches dying back. Watering too often results in poor growth or worse. If overwatering continues, you would probably see dieback in the tree and eventual death from root rots. If the plant does not receive enough water, the plant canopy will begin to thin out and along with that a reduction in blooms. If you feel like this tree does not get much water then try flooding the area around the tree once a week in conjunction with your irrigations. If the problem is not enough water, you should see a reaction to additional applied water in 3 to 4 weeks. Vitex in bloom It also will do best with irrigations similar to other most of your landscape or fruit trees. This means regular deep irrigations. Avoid daily irrigations. Water about twice a week during the hot summer months. In the spring and fall months, water deeply and thoroughly once in a week. As temperatures cool towards winter, you would probably irrigate deeply every 10 to 14 days.

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Poor Canopy Development in Newly Planted Large Tree Could Be Lack of Water

1 Comment / borers, lack of water, large tree, locust, newly planted, poor growth, sunburn / xtremehorticulture

Q. I think I this might be a pink locust tree. I’m seeing a lot of dead branches. The tree was planted last Fall. Should I give it some fertilizer to help it push out new growth? A. The tree looks a little skimpy on the foliage side but I don’t see anything from this distance that gives me much overall concern. Check to make sure it was not planted too deep. Some landscapers are notorious for digging a hole barely large enough for the root ball. This can also be part of the problem. I tell people now if they buy a large tree from a nursery, hire some people and dig the hole before they deliver the tree and buy good amendment for the backfill while they are at it. A thin canopy like that can also mean a lack of water. The lack of water would be on the quantity applied at each irrigation, not on the frequency of irrigation. Right now that trees should get by easily receiving water twice a week. But I would guess a tree that size would require the same amount of water as about half of the box that it came in. So if that was a 24 inch box I would guess it would need 20 to 30 gallons each time it was irrigated. Apply some good fertilizer and take a hose and soak it after you made sure it was not planted too deep. Do that about once a week for the next month and see what happens. Sunburn on locust followed by death of that side of the tree. When the bark was pulled off, borers damage was seen. If this is an Idaho or Black locust like Purple Robe, they are very susceptible to sun damage to the trunk. Once the trunk gets damaged they frequently are attacked by borers. As a precaution it might be a good idea to give it a soil drench with Merit insecticide as a precaution. The same insecticide can be found in Ferti-lome’s tree and shrub systemic insect drench. I know Viragrow has a pretty good price on it if they still have the small containers. If at all possible you want that tree to develop lower scaffold limbs to help shade the trunk.The canopy could use some light pruning. Remove crossed branches or branches growing on top of each other or too close together. You can do that now if you don’t remove too much or wait until this winter.

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