Proper Pruning Practices

Prune Palms? ... DO NOT REMOVE GREEN FRONDS

We see it every day – palms routinely pruned in a hurricane cut (11 o’clock to 1 o’clock position) that strips fronds up the trunk to the head of the plant.  Note that this is proper practice only when TRANSPLANTING native sabal palms. Every plant you will see on this page has been over-pruned. This is absolutely NOT proper pruning practice for the following many reasons:
      
Unless they are completely dead, palm fronds should not be removed. Do not be fooled by slight discoloration of palm fronds. This is a common occurrence, significant of nutritional deficiencies to which palms are prone.  

Common results from over-pruning palms include:

• Plant stress that invites the attack of insects, such as palm weevils or fungal disease, such as Ganoderma.
  
• Pencil-pointing, a narrowing or decrease of the trunk diameter.  This makes the palm trunk highly susceptible to breakage in wind events.  Many people mistakenly believe that pruning is a safety precaution for storm events, but the opposite is true.  Rarely do green fronds blow off in a storm.  Dead ones may, but rarely cause damage, particularly compared to much more extensive damage caused by the snapping off of the trunk at weak points caused by previous frond removal and resultant nutrient deprivation.
  
• Reduced winter hardiness, most palms you see in Sarasota County are not native to this area. Our region is at the northern most range of many palm species, and cyclical freezes that are part of our climate destroy significant numbers of plants, particularly those not located on our more temperate barrier islands. 
• Palm fronds protect the very fragile "bud" at the center of the fronds at the top of the trunk.  Since palms are monocots, injury to this single bud will cause the entire palm to die.  A full circle of fronds provides maximum protection to the bud, particularly during high winds.
  
• Over-pruning often causes over-flowering of palms, which also stresses the plant.
  
• Palms are commonly susceptible to potassium and other mineral deficiencies.  Living fronds are nutrient reservoirs, and their removal can compound deficiencies and lead to premature death.
  
• The fronds and supporting boot of palms also act as the plant’s stabilizer and shock-absorber. Diminishing that capacity makes the plant susceptible to breakage and wind throw.

• No Spikes or other wounds, unlike trees, palms do not produce secondary wood and cannot form calluses over wounds.  
  • Make certain your plant maintenance team does not use climbing spikes on your palms and takes care to avoid mechanical and other wounds to the trunk.
    
• Sanitation – disease easily spreads to palms through infected pruning tools. 
  • Your team should soak all tools in a 10% bleach solution for 10 minutes after each tree is pruned.