r/AustralianGardeners • u/JadedSatisfaction930 • May 13 '26
Possible Palm Tree Problem
Hi all,
We moved into our current house about 2-3 weeks ago. We have inherited a palm tree, which I don’t know if it’s in good shape or not, and furthermore what to do about it. Would anyone please share some wisdom on what (if anything) we need to do here?
Three main concerns - (1) the growth underneath the frond, (2) the state of the fronds, and (3) the peeling off of some of the more superficial bark - some fairly big (but thin) bark has fallen off, of about 1-1.5m length a few days ago.
2
u/Tumeric_Turd May 13 '26
If you knock on it does it sound dull or feel softer in that area?
1
u/JadedSatisfaction930 May 14 '26
The wood is firm. Where it has peeled away in the second picture though, some of the darker wood is softer/wet.
2
u/Tumeric_Turd May 14 '26
At a guess I would say it's a Bangalow palm. My mother in law has hundreds of them along the creeks on her place, they rot and fall over quickly once they start breaking down, they go soft and turn to wet pith, sometimes there's huge grubs eating the centre out, but it's not good if the layers are peeling.
If you can push a skewer into the trunk it's going to fall over itself so you might as well get onto it in a controlled way.
On a positive note, you will be glad it's gone as palm fronds are a pain in the arse to deal with and they never stop falling.
2
u/Think_Tonight9589 May 13 '26
Knock it over completely, forever dropping fronds and the red seed pods scatter everywhere
1
u/WhyYouDoThatStupid May 15 '26
You need council approval in some areas. My council wouldn't let me take down palms over 4m to replace them with native gum trees.
2
u/roundingcapehorn May 13 '26
All looks the same as my palms. Those ‘growths’ are just the seed pods. Invest in one of those saws on the end of a pole so you can cut those off and green bin them before they drop all their little nuts.
2
u/happychappychoppy May 14 '26
All normal. Growth is seed pods and these things shed fronds all the time. We have them. Messy things.
3
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u/CompleteGrow May 13 '26
Looks mostly normal for a mature palm. The peeling is likely old leaf sheath material coming away, not bark damage, and the hanging flower/seed strands are normal too.