Date palm in the conditions of an ordinary home, it is still more of a curiosity than an ordinary thing. It is not difficult to germinate a seedling from an ordinary seed. However, not everyone has the patience and diligence to properly care for it for several years before the tree becomes an adult. Homemade dates will never bear fruit, but they will fit perfectly into the interior and decorate your home.
The common date can be sprouted from the seeds of the fruit, which are sold in the store. The culture has other varieties - Canarian and Robelena. They are propagated and sold only in flower shops. Dates that have not passed through can be used as seed material. heat treatment. For example, dried or dried. Seeds for planting must be processed immediately after receiving them.
It is best to start work in February or March. Prepare several seeds, even if you only want one palm tree. Indeed, during the growing process, young seedlings often die. The procedure should begin with water treatment of the seeds. Impregnating the seeds with moisture will significantly speed up the process of seed germination: 2-3 weeks versus 4 (if you skip this stage).
Date pit Subsequence:
- Remove the seeds from the date and remove as much pulp as possible from them.
- Place the seeds in a glass with warm water for 48 hours. Renew the liquid 2 times a day, maintaining the temperature in the container above +22°C.
- Remove the swollen growths of pulp with a knife.
- Give the seeds a 5-minute bath of hot water(about 80°C).
Many people use cotton wool during soaking. A cotton pad with a bone is placed in a plate filled with water. Cover it with another damp cotton wool on top. You can also use rolled gauze or sawdust as a material.
Advice. To further reduce the time it takes for the seeds to hatch, you can sand them or scratch them with a knife. A damaged shell allows moisture to pass through more easily, which gives vitality to the sprout.
How to plant a seed correctly
Suitable substrate for planting is indoor flowers from the store. You can prepare it yourself: mix peat, raw sawdust and river sand. This soil is optimal for young plant, but in the future, during the first and subsequent transplants, the pot will need to be filled with other soil. Proportions:
- humus - 40%;
- turf land - 20%;
- leaf soil - 20%;
- sand - 20%;
- peat - 10%.
Sprouting date seeds The planting process should be carried out as follows:
- Place the cleaned and treated seeds into the soil in a strictly vertical position.
- Sprinkle a centimeter layer of the same soil on top.
- Place the container and seeds in a warm place (+22...25°C). You can directly on the heating radiator.
- Water moderately: so that the soil does not dry out, but the water does not stagnate.
Attention! At proper care After 2-3 months, a sprout will emerge from the ground - a juvenile leaf. Then it will grow into an arrow consisting of 2-3 sharp leaves.
Transplantation and further care of date tree seedlings
After the sprouts reach 10 cm, each of them needs to be transplanted into a wider pot. Florists advise doing the procedure annually for the first 5 years of the palm tree’s life. The size of the container must constantly increase to meet the growing needs of the plant's root system. For the final transplant you need a spacious pot.
Advice. After acquiring the date permanent place periodically change residence instead of transplantation top layer soil without disturbing the plant.
Replanting is the most delicate process in caring for a date palm. In inexperienced hands, more than one seedling may die. The reason is the tenderness of the root system of this crop. If the long root is even slightly damaged, the plant will die. There is only one method suitable for replanting - transshipment. It involves transferring the root along with a lump of earth.
Date sprouts Plant care has the following features:
- While the date has not yet formed, it needs weekly feeding in spring and summer. During the dormant period, organic and mineral fertilizers apply no more than once a month.
- It is important that the soil always remains moist. In summer, water the plant generously, even collecting water in a tray. In winter - least of all.
- The palm tree responds well to spraying in warm time year. In addition, give the plant a weekly shower with water at room temperature. During the procedure, you need to protect the soil from excess moisture.
- Dates love a lot of light and will withstand even straight sun rays. Without proper lighting, palm leaves will become long and brittle.
- The air temperature in the room should be moderate, in the range of +16...+22°C. Placing a palm tree near a heating radiator is risky: it will die from the heat. In summer, the plant is taken out onto the loggia or veranda, limiting drafts. In winter, the temperature can range between +13…14°C.
Even if you care for your date correctly, don’t expect quick results. The palm tree will turn into decorative tree around the 5th year. But after this, the plant will become a real decoration of your home.
Growing a date palm from a seed: video
It is quite possible to grow a date palm from a seed. To become the owner of an ornamental foliage plant, you need to know a few simple rules. A palm tree planted in an apartment will never bear fruit, but will delight you with beautiful leaves.
How to plant a date seed at home: expert advice.
How to plant a date from a seed
Remove the pulp from fruits bought in a store or market. They must be fresh or dry, but not heat-treated. Place them in a glass of water for two days. It must be placed in a warm place, and the water must be changed twice during this time. If you end up with pulp on the pit, this process will help remove it completely. This is necessary to prevent mold from forming on the pit during planting.
The seed is planted vertically in moist soil. Peat or moss is best suited for this. You can also mix them with sand to help the substrate retain moisture better. The volume of the pot should be small: 30−40 ml. Sprouts appear after 1-3 months. At this time, the substrate with the seed needs to be watered, but quite moderately. The temperature for germination should be quite high: about 25-30 degrees.
After the sprout appears, the pot must be moved to a brighter place. When the sprout grows several arrows, the plant needs to be transplanted into a pot. large volume with good drainage. Don't forget to feed the palm tree. Bird droppings or potassium nitrate are suitable for this.
To make the date sprout faster, you can use the advice of experienced gardeners:
- use the seeds for planting immediately after they are removed from the fruit;
- To make sprouts appear faster, some amateurs violate the integrity of the hard shell of the seed. This can be done using sandpaper or a knife;
- Before planting, the seed can be pre-placed in well-moistened cotton wool, gauze or hydrogel. A container with moistened cotton wool is placed on the battery. Water is added to the container daily. After the seed swells, it can be planted in the ground;
- It is best to plant the seed in February-March;
- When soaking, you can add natural biostimulants to the water, for example, a sodium humate preparation.
Following these tips will allow you not to wait for sprouts for several months, but to receive them within 3-4 weeks.
"....a tree 15 meters high, with spreading, constantly renewed leaves at the top of the stem, a straight “shaggy” trunk, huge hanging bunches of fruits..." This is a description of the date palm, which on a hot day gives the aborigines its shade and usefulness fruits - maintains health. The palm tree grows not only in South America, Africa and Arabia, it can be found here too. Favorite places are offices, foyers of various institutions, cinemas, parks. Today, we will not touch upon the topic of the properties of dates; you can familiarize yourself with it on other pages of our website www.site. We will talk about how to grow this beauty yourself, at home, especially since there are numerous specific examples of this.
At the very beginning of the conversation, we want to warn you that a palm tree grows slowly at home; in three years it can sprout only 3-4 leaves, but it definitely will not bear fruit, because For this you need two plants - a female and a male. At the same time, it can bloom in 6-8 years, but maybe in the 20th... So if you really want to grow a date palm that bears fruit, eat a date straight from the tree, grown from a seed at home, then you will have to grow it nearby two trees of different sexes.
How to grow a date from a seed?
Let's take it date pit, clean from the pulp. It may seem surprising, but not only fresh fruit, but also dried fruit is suitable for this purpose. To be on the safe side, we take a few pieces, dry them for a day, then soak them in water for 1-2 days. warm water, changing it daily. Due to the hard shell of the bone, it is necessary to make an incision on it, or rub it sandpaper. Through the cracks, moisture will get inside faster, thereby speeding up the swelling time, and then it will be easier for the leaves to break through.
Landing method
Let's prepare the pot. The composition for planting should include peat with soil, sand or peat with sawdust (1:1). Before planting, moisten the soil thoroughly. We immerse the bones vertically, to a depth of 1.5 times longer than size the seed itself. Place in a warm place - t 30-35 C. To prevent the soil in the container from drying out, monitor watering.
After 1-1.5 months, we carefully transplant or plant the sprouted seed into pots 8 cm high, filling them with a mixture of turf, sand, peat, humus and charcoal (2: 4: 2: 2: 1). During this procedure, do not tear off the seed; the sprout still feeds from it! We would like to warn you that the palm tree does not tolerate transplantation well and best way, it’s just to transfer the sprout along with the soil into a pot larger size. We move it to a bright place, excluding direct sunlight. To do this, cover the window on which the plant will stand with sheets of white paper. Don't forget to water and spray the sprouts with warm water.
When they reach 10-15 cm (another 1-2 months), change their place of residence again and place them in a “house” 15 cm high. In this case, the composition of the soil remains the same as before. At the bottom of the pot, arrange drainage from pebbles, in its bottom there are holes for excess water to escape.
Location
It is better to place a pot with a palm tree on the south side, or slightly to the east; it loves light and a well-ventilated place, far from the wind. The plant must be constantly turned towards the sun so that all leaves reach it, make sure that the leaf arrow is directed into the room. Without light, the leaves stretch, form unevenly, and become brittle.
In summer, the palm tree needs a temperature of 15-20 C, it is better to keep it on the balcony - on fresh air, V winter time t 10-12 C.
Watering
For irrigation, settle the water, it should be soft, without chlorine, temperature 18-20 C. In spring and summer it requires abundant watering, in winter it depends on the air temperature. Do not overfill under any circumstances. Do not forget about wet treatment of the leaves, using a sponge or spray for this purpose. In spring and summer, fertilize the moist soil every 7 days with a special fertilizer, diluting it in water, in the fall - once every 2 weeks, in winter - once a month.
Problems
If leaves appear brown spots- you use hard water. This develops chlorosis, growth retardation. This color also appears when the soil is waterlogged. In this case, limit watering.
If the tips turn brown, then the culprit is most likely dry air at home. So, do wet processing, place a lot of jars of water around the palm tree for its natural evaporation. The cause of the same problem may be insufficient watering, cold air. Brown at the bottom layer, indicates outdated and dead leaves, cut them off sharp knife.
If all the leaves are of this shade, then you need to save the palm tree - you did not spare water when watering and the roots began to rot.
Remove the plant from the pot, inspect the roots; if they are darkened and watery, then the palm tree is lost. You'll have to throw it away. If you find living roots, feel free to cut off dead and damaged shoots, sprinkle the “wounds” with charcoal and replant the tree in new soil.
The yellow color of the leaf indicates that you forgot about feeding, or the roots were left without water. Due to lack of moisture, the leaves droop; unfortunately, this defect cannot be corrected. They will need to be lifted and tied to a support.
The leaves turn pale when there is an abundance of light to protect them from bright solar lighting, slightly shade the palm tree.
Note
1. Know that sprouts from seeds in apartment conditions can hatch only after 5-6 months, so do not despair and be patient.
2. Cirrus leaves appear after 3-4 years; before that they are narrow.
3. In the first 5 years, the palm tree is replanted annually, then every 3 years, gradually increasing the size and volume of the pot. After 15 years - once every five years. During this procedure, the roots forming the felt layer are cut off.
4. Each time you replant, increase the amount of turf. Drainage must be good.
5. The pot should be high, not wide, because by the palm tree long roots.
6. Under no circumstances should you trim the top of your head. In a palm tree, the top of the trunk is the only point of growth!!!
Pests include scale insects, spider mites and mealybugs. The fight against them is the same as for everyone else indoor plants. This includes spraying with garlic extract, washing the leaves with laundry soap, etc.
If you adhere to the rules for growing date palms, then we guarantee you relaxation in a hammock under the shade of its spreading branches, in your dreams of overseas travel, even at home!
Date palms are evergreen beautiful plants, which today can be seen in many homes, offices, and hotel lobbies.
With their help, they decorate rooms, enliven a boring interior, and zone the space. You can buy palm trees in greenhouses or flower shops, but they are quite expensive. Many experienced flower growers This type of plant is grown at home from date seeds.
What do date palms look like?
Representatives of the genus are squat shrubs or trees. Among them, a well-known plant that can be grown from a seed is a tree with one trunk and pinnately divided long leaves, at the base of which there are sharp spines. Dioecious plant When flowering, it produces paniculate inflorescences with small yellow flowers.
The date palm, Date or Phoenix in nature grows up to thirty meters with delicious sweet fruits. To obtain its tasty fruits, trees are grown in industrial scale. Home gardeners are often interested in whether the Date will bear fruit if this flower is planted in room conditions? In order for the plant to begin to bloom and bear fruit, it needs to grow to a height of at least fifteen meters. Therefore, there is no hope for its flowering and fruiting indoors.
Growing Dates from Seeds
How long does it take to grow a palm tree from seed? If you decide to grow a date palm at home, then know - it will take a long time to grow. For the first two years, she will have enough space on the windowsill.
The seed for planting should be one that has not undergone heat treatment. Simply by sticking it into the ground, germination can take up to six months. To speed up this process, you should resort to some tricks:
Thanks to this soaking, the first sprouts can be obtained within one to three months. In any case, it is best to be on the safe side by soaking several seeds at once to germinate them.
How to properly grow date seedlings?
How to plant a seed correctly? The swollen bone is placed in a container with soil mixture, which should consist of peat, sand and raw sawdust (1:1:1). The seed is immersed vertically in the mixture and sprinkled with one centimeter of the same soil.
The containers are placed in a warm place with an air temperature of at least +25 degrees. Container on top can be covered with glass or polyethylene. Every day the glass needs to be lifted and the soil moisture checked. It should not dry out, but it is also not advisable for the soil to be too wet.
As soon as the sprout hatches, the container is placed in a well-lit place without direct sunlight. Having grown to ten to fifteen centimeters, the small sprout is transplanted into a larger container with a diameter of ten centimeters. Date palms have long roots, so the pot should not be low.
Drainage made of pebbles, charcoal or ceramite is placed at the bottom of the prepared container. A soil mixture is prepared, which can be purchased at the store or prepared independently. Soil for Date should consist of the following components:
The transplanted sprout is well watered and placed on an eastern or western windowsill. It will be needed replant into a new container every year, which should be slightly larger than the previous one. Since the palm tree has delicate roots, it is recommended to replant it so that the plant does not get sick and quickly takes root in the new pot.
Under no circumstances should a small tree be shaped or trimmed, since its growth point is at the top of the trunk. The date will produce leaves only after three to five years of growth at home. For uniform formation of the crown, it is necessary to rotate the pot around its axis from time to time. The new leaf arrow should be turned towards the shadow.
Date palm care at home
Tropical plant loves good lighting, That's why It should be grown in a bright, sunny and warm room. If there is insufficient light, date leaves will become elongated and brittle.
The air temperature in summer can be anything. The tree can be placed on the loggia or open balcony where there are no drafts. In winter, the indoor temperature should be between 12–18 degrees Celsius. It is not recommended to place a palm tree near heating appliances at home. Its leaves will begin to dry out and the plant may die.
When caring for Date special attention should be given air humidity, which should be around 50%. To do this, palm leaves should be sprayed. In winter, when heating devices dry the air, spraying must be done several times a day.
The plant should be watered soft, settled water at room temperature. Do not allow the earthen clod to dry out and at the same time, water to stagnate in the pot and tray. In summer, watering can be plentiful. In winter, if Date is kept in a cool room, watering is minimal.
A palm tree will grow well and delight with its beautiful leaves if you do the following when caring for it: regular feeding. In spring and summer it needs to be fertilized regularly, alternating mineral and organic fertilizers. In winter, complex fertilizers are applied once a month.
In the first five years, the plant is replanted annually in pots, which should be 3–4 cm larger in diameter and depth than the previous one.
Older trees are only replanted when necessary, as their roots do not like to be disturbed. You can simply renew the soil every six months by removing the top layer of soil and adding a new soil mixture to the pot.
It is better to replant plants in the spring. Young plants in larger pots begin to grow vigorously. However, if the container is too large, the tree may stop growing altogether.
Diseases and pests of date palm
Violations of maintenance conditions and care rules often lead to the appearance of scale insects, mealybugs and spider mites on the plant. If the palm leaves stop growing, dry out, curl, darken and plaques appear on them, then the date is suffering from pests. It is recommended to regularly inspect the leaves and spray them when insects first appear. garlic solution or wash with water and laundry soap. The treatment is repeated after a week.
A severely affected plant requires the use of insecticidal preparations. You can use Actellik by dissolving it in water according to the instructions.
Sick and weak trees are susceptible to diseases:
- pink rot causes rotting of leaves and stems;
- spotting disfigures the leaves.
In this case, the plant is processed fungicides, which include methyl thiophanate and mancozeb. Processing must be carried out strictly according to the instructions that come with the drugs.
Possible problems when growing dates
Why do palm leaves darken?
When caring for a plant at home, you need to make sure that the soil in the pot is not too damp, and that the soil in the tray the water did not stagnate. Otherwise, the leaves will begin to darken and turn brown. This means that the roots have begun to rot. Over time, the pot will smell rotten and the trunk will become soft. The plant may die. To prevent this from happening, the palm tree must be removed from the container and the watery, dark and soft roots must be cut off. The remaining roots are sprinkled with crushed coal, and the tree is planted in a new soil mixture.
Date palm turns yellow
If stagnation of water in the soil leads to rotting of the plant and darkening of the leaves, then with insufficient watering, constant overdrying of the earthen clod and low air humidity, the palm leaves will begin to turn yellow. It is necessary to monitor the moisture of the earthen coma and constantly spray palm leaves.
The date is drying
If there is insufficient air humidity on a palm tree, the tips of the leaves dry first, and over time they can dry out completely. So don't be lazy spray the tree, especially in winter, when the radiators are turned on. You can increase the humidity in the room using a special humidifier.
Why doesn't the date palm grow?
There may be several reasons for plant growth to stop:
- Too much big pot. If a palm tree is transplanted into a container that is much larger than the previous one, then until the roots fill all the soil available in the pot, the plant will not grow upward. Therefore, the new container should be only 3–4 cm larger than the previous one.
- High soil acidity. For good growth For palm trees, it is necessary to select soil with an acidity of no more than 7 pH. It should also contain iron and manganese.
- Low air temperature. Date root growth slows down at temperatures below +17 degrees. This is explained by the fact that when low temperatures the roots stop absorbing nutrients from the soil. As a result, the plant does not receive the required amount of microelements and stops growing.
Growing a date palm from a seed requires not only good care and correct content, but also great attention and patience. But as a result, the date will become a decoration of the apartment, a reason for the admiration of guests and the pride of the owner.
Date palm at home pictures
How to grow a date from a seed
Date lovers, while eating the amazing fruits, are probably wondering - can a date palm grow from a seed? If so, will it look like a plant that grows in nature?
It is possible to grow a homemade date from a seed, but such a palm tree in an apartment will never bear fruit.
She will fit perfectly into modern interior, will not require intensive care and some plants will even begin to bloom, so why not try it?
The desire to have a home greenhouse very often arises after a bright vacation among exotic nature. Implement the idea winter garden in an ordinary standard apartment in in full It will never work out, but a few unusual indoor plants can become an excellent decoration for the living room, bedroom or kitchen.
As you can see from the photo, the date palm in the interior requires a lot of space, since the plant has branches that are both high and wide. To create real tropics at home, an adult palm tree should be placed only in those rooms where there is not a lot of furniture.
Dates in the interior will not look impressive if you place them in corners or too close to the walls. For the interior of rooms in Mediterranean or nautical style This indoor plant is the most ideal option.
A properly selected pot will add style - these can be stylized medieval barrels or specially aged clay flowerpots.
If in your apartment small rooms, then this is not at all a reason to refuse interesting experiment– Grow a date palm from a seed.
It will grow for a long time, the plant is not one of those species that stretches out in a year or two, so in the first years there will be enough space for it on the windowsill.
Then you can give it to relatives, friends, or take it to work - in offices there is usually always plenty of space.
Believe me: it is very interesting to watch every day the gradual transformation of a palm tree, how the leaves appear, how they grow, how the seedling completely changes.
See what a date palm will look like at home, so you don’t have to worry that your pet is growing slowly.
This is exactly what a date palm looks like at the age of 2-3 years, it is not very beautiful yet.
These palms are about 5 years old: they already have feathery leaves, but lack height.
Tips on how to grow a date palm from a seed
A date from a seed will only work if it has not undergone heat treatment. Both fresh fruits brought from vacation and dried fruits from the store are suitable for this.
For the sake of experiment, many people try to simply stick a bone into flower pot and surprisingly: it usually takes root. In an apartment, this can take up to 5-6 months, is it possible to speed up the process?
How to germinate a date seed:
1. The seeds must be thoroughly cleaned and washed so that the process of rotting does not begin in the soil. Once washed, they should sit for a day until the next stage - soaking.
2. Date seed is very hard. To speed up the seed germination time, the most various ways:
– its surface is scratched or rubbed with sandpaper to allow water to penetrate inside more quickly;
– cuts are made to make the shell easier to split;
– for this you can simply scald the bone with hot water.
3. The most effective soaking is with cotton wool. A piece of cotton wool in a small container (for example, a plate) is generously moistened with water, a bone is placed on it, and covered with another layer of moistened cotton wool to prevent rapid evaporation of moisture. Cotton wool can be replaced with gauze, sawdust, hydrogel.
4. Germination requires high temperature, so the container with cotton wool can be placed on the battery. Every day you need to monitor the moisture content of the cotton wool and add a little water.
5. When the seed swells well, it can be transplanted into the ground.
Thanks to soaking, several months are saved. Best time to start germination - February-March. Even if you want to grow only one date from a seed, you need to take several seeds. Some sprouts will die due to disease or your inept actions during transplantation, so insurance will not hurt.
How to grow a date palm from a seed further:
1. All seeds are immersed in prepared soil (soil from the forest, peat or a mixture of earth and sawdust) vertically to a depth equal to one and a half lengths of the seed.
2. Place the container with soil in a warm place. Make sure the soil is constantly moist.
3. The first shoots can be seen in 1-3 months. When their length reaches 10-15 cm, each sprout will need to be transplanted into a separate pot with a diameter of about 10 cm. The pot should not be too wide; its height is important, since the date will have long roots.
4. There must be good drainage at the bottom of the pot (expanded clay, charcoal, pebbles), since stagnation of water is detrimental to the plant. You can buy special soil for palm trees or mix the soil yourself, take:
– clay-turf soil – 2 parts;
– humus-leaf soil – 2 parts;
– peat – 1 part;
– rotted manure – 1 part;
– sand – 1 part.
A small palm tree will need to be replanted every year, always increasing the pot size a little. The plant has very delicate roots, so replanting should be done using the transshipment method to avoid damage to the root system.
Date palm at home - how to care and replant
Have exotic palm at home it is pleasant and prestigious, because an adult indoor plant is expensive. Growing a date from a seed is an excellent solution for everyone who does not have the opportunity to purchase a grown seedling, but not everyone can do it.
Why doesn’t every plant look like in our photos?
The main reason that the sprout did not become a tall and lush tree is that it was not received on time full information data care exotic plant.
The advice is suitable for both adult specimens and seedlings that are only a few years old.
The temperature in the room where the pet will be should be moderate 16-20°C. There is no need to place it near heating devices, so as not to provoke the death of the plant. IN summer period best place– on outdoors without drafts.
Humidity in the room should be within 50%. Spraying the leaves will increase it; this can be done up to several times a day.
The lighting should be sufficient so that the leaves do not become brittle or elongated. Even direct sunlight is possible. The pot should be periodically unrolled so that a uniform, beautiful crown is formed.
Water abundantly - only in summer; at this time you can even leave water in the pan. In winter, watering is minimal. It is necessary to strictly control so that the coma does not dry out, but the water does not stagnate due to poor drainage.
Transshipment – the only way transplants. Everyone is looking for information on how to plant a date seed, but then they forget that until the age of 5, the plant needs to be replanted every year. A large palm requires replanting as the roots grow.
Spraying and wiping the leaves will increase humidity and give a beautiful appearance plant. Once a week it is advisable to take it under the shower, but you must carefully protect the earthen lump from excess moisture.
Fertilizers (mineral and organic) are introduced in sufficient quantities during the period active growth– from March to September weekly, and in winter once a month.
A date palm from a seed can either decorate a home or completely destroy coziness and comfort.
When a plant is sick, it looks very unsightly - the leaves turn yellow, darken, fall off, the trunks become soft, and a putrid smell appears. Diseases arise from improper care or due to pest attacks. Help your pet: there is detailed information on our website on how to deal with these problems.
Date palm at home
IN wild conditions The date palm grows in India and Africa; scientists know 17 of its species. A tree lives among the hot sand for about 150 years, and during this time many new plants grow around it, growing from its seeds and roots. Is it really possible for a desert palm tree to grow in our apartments without specific care?
Robelena (Phoenix Roebelenii) with a very beautiful dense crown no higher than 1.5-2 meters.
Canary (Phoenix Canariensis) – height up to 2 meters, feathery trunks, hard straight and narrow leaves.
Finger (Phoenix Dactylifera) is the most common form, not very beautiful, but growing relatively quickly. The disadvantage of this plant is that its trunk will gradually become bare over time.
Growing a date at home requires a lot of desire and time, but it can be an excellent hobby for for many years. Many people try to grow date palms from seed; this is an excellent solution for anyone who does not have the opportunity to purchase an adult seedling, which is relatively expensive.
How to care for a date palm
The date tree will not delight you with its beauty for the first five years; decorative value will appear only after 5-7 years. Don’t expect that, having grown a date from a seed, you will be able to have it in just a couple of years. great decor your home.
To decorate your home with an adult indoor date palm, caring for it throughout the years requires several important points:
It must be constantly turned towards the sun so that the sun's rays reach all the leaves. Without light, the leaves stretch, develop unevenly and become brittle.
The plant is very afraid of drafts. When ventilating your home in the autumn-winter period, you need to protect it from cold air currents.
When watering, water should not stagnate at the roots, so good drainage is prerequisite. For irrigation, use settled, soft water without chlorine at a temperature of approximately 20°C.
The leaves need to be sprayed daily, as the tree needs moist air. Once a week, the plant will even need a real shower, but during the procedure, the earthen lump in the pot must be carefully covered with film.
The leaves should also be regularly wiped with damp sponges so that they are not attacked by pests and simply to ensure that the palm tree has a well-groomed appearance.
Under no circumstances should you cut or break off the top of a palm tree. Trimming the top of the stem can result in the death of the plant.
Mineral and organic fertilizers apply twice a month in the warm season and once a month in the winter. Complex preparations for palm trees or decorative foliage indoor plants are suitable. They are applied only to moist soil, in diluted form.
Date palm – replanting, transshipment
The plant often begins to hurt after transplantation. It bears it very hard if everything is done traditional way.
How to replant a date palm, is it necessary to do it at all?
A young date palm (up to 4-5 years old) is replanted annually, and mature plant– in 2-3 years.
Transplantation is required only when the roots no longer fit in the pot and are clearly visible through the drainage holes, so each replantation (more precisely, transfer) is done into a pot 3-4 cm larger in diameter.
To do this, the bush is carefully transferred into a new container, and the voids are filled with soil.
Experts in caring for date palms at home have noticed: the larger the pot becomes, the more intense the plant begins to grow. But you should not take containers that are too large, as the tree’s growth may stop in them.
For transplantation, store bought ones are taken soil mixtures“For palm trees” or the soil is prepared independently based on:
2 parts light clay-turf;
2 parts humus-leaf;
1 part peat;
1 part rotted manure;
1 part sand;
some charcoal.
The soil should be loose, soft, permeable to air and moisture. A good drainage layer should be placed at the bottom of the pot to prevent water stagnation as much as possible. The pot should be chosen not wide, but high, so that long roots fit well.
Date palm diseases
It would seem that the indoor date palm is receiving care, but its appearance is not the same. high level– it dries, the leaves turn yellow, darken, and curl. What could be the problem?
Let's look at what date palm diseases can occur due to poor care:
If the leaves become completely dark, almost brown, the trunk becomes soft, and a putrid smell is felt, then this indicates waterlogged soil. After such signs appear, watering stops and you need to wait until the soil dries.
It is necessary to inspect what condition it is in root system To do this, the plant is removed from the container in which it grows. If all the roots are soft, watery, dark, then they have already died and such a palm tree cannot be saved. If there are living roots, then they must be carefully protected from dead ones by cutting them off and sprinkling crushed coal on the cut areas.
If only the tips of the leaves turn brown, this happens as a result of lack of watering, dry air or winter drafts, sharp changes temperatures Brown leaves they're not scary downstairs - it's age-related changes. The darkened leaves have died off, so they should be cut off with a sharp knife; they cannot be restored.
If a date palm turns yellow, it means that it is watered either with hard water or does not receive enough moisture, nutrients. Due to insufficient watering, the leaves droop, and this defect cannot be corrected. You can lift them by tying them to a support.
Pale appearance indicates too much light or red lesions spider mite. To protect the tree from bright sunlight, you need to slightly shade the plant.
If a date palm dries out, the leaves fall off, darken, curl, and brown plaques appear on their surface - the plant dies from pests.
Pest control - scale insects, mealybugs or spider mites - is standard for all indoor plants. You need to wash the leaves with a solution laundry soap, sprinkle with garlic extract.
If severe damage is observed, apply a solution of Actellik (a broad-spectrum insecticide) - 1-2 ml per liter of water.
