Washingtonia

Family. Arecaceae or Palms.

Origin. Western United States. 

Description. A fan palm with a short, conical, mahogany-colored trunk up to 20 m high and up to 90 cm in diameter and long, spiny petioles up to 1.5 m long, which bear large fan-shaped leaves divided into segments. A distinctive feature of V. filamentous are the long thin fibers that hang from the edges of the leaf. The gray-green leaves of washingtonia reach 60 cm in diameter or more and form a very lush crown. Numerous branching large inflorescences up to 3 m long are hidden under the leaves of the crown. The flowers are white and yellow, subsequently forming oblong or round red-black small fruits with a diameter of about 1.3 cm, with a single seed inside.

Height. Up to 25 m in nature and up to 3 m indoors.

Caring at home

Reproduction, growing from seeds 

Seeds. Even old seeds germinate well; germination time is about a month. Often self-seeding occurs under mature plants.

How to transplant washingtonia 

In the spring. It likes cramped containers, so replant into pots one size larger when light roots appear in large numbers on the surface of the soil - no more than once every two to three years. The palm tree is unusually sensitive to root damage, so try to transfer the palm tree to a new container. For large specimens, the top layer of soil is changed.

How to care

An easy palm to grow as a houseplant. In the wild, it is adapted to a wide variety of conditions - a wide range of temperatures and humidity. The palm tree will feel better if you move it to fresh air in the summer. Remove dead leaves from the plant. 

Diseases and pests 

Washingtonia at home turns yellow if there is root rot or when placed near heating appliances.

Pests are rare - sometimes mealybugs, scale insects, and spider mites appear.

How and when it blooms 

It blooms extremely rarely in cultivation.

Watering washingtonia 

During active growth, water deeply and often to keep the soil moist, especially if the plant is close to a sunny window; but do not let the water stagnate in the pot. During the dormant period, water more moderately, enough to moisten the soil, but allowing the top layer to dry out before the next watering. 

Soil for palm trees 

With leaf humus and peat. For best drainage, place a large amount of clay pot shards at the bottom of the pot.

Feeding

Feed with liquid fertilizer every two weeks during active growth, the tree is very responsive to fertilizer. Slow-release fertilizer can be used during the growing season in summer.

Containment temperature

A thermophilic plant, it tolerates short-term temperature drops of up to 10 ° C. 

Lighting

Requires bright light throughout the year, perhaps a few hours of direct sunlight each day. The greatest growth typically occurs during the summer months, and adequate lighting during this period causes the plant to produce large leaves of intense color. If these palms receive too little light, they may drop a few of their lower leaves.

Spraying 

Tolerates fairly dry air, but will look more lush if you place a tub of palm tree on a tray of damp pebbles. 

Note

Can live from 80 to 250 years or more.

Varieties:

Washingtonia filifera

Slender, elegant palm trees up to 15 m high. The tree trunks are thick, powerful, and carry the remains of old, fallen leaves. The leaves are compound, fan-shaped, reaching a length of 4 m. The petioles of the leaves grow up to 2 m, and in adult plants they have curved spines. The leaf segments are glossy, dark green, reaching a length of 100 - 120 cm. A distinctive feature of this plant is the presence of thin light fibers on the leaves. In its natural environment, during the warm season, the plant forms large, penetrating inflorescences with small, yellowish flowers. After flowering, the flowers turn into small round berries with a diameter of up to 1 cm. In indoor culture, flowering rarely occurs. 

Washingtonia robusta or powerful

Tall slender palm trees reaching 30 m in height. The trunks are single, gray, with remnants of fallen leaves. In the natural habitat, dried leaf blades often remain under the lush green crown. The leaves are complex, fan-shaped, reach one and a half meters in diameter, and consist of numerous narrow, linear, glossy segments. The leaf petioles grow up to 1 m in length and have sharp spines along the edge. Large, branched, drooping inflorescences grow up to 3 m and bear numerous small orange or yellow flowers. As the flowers ripen, they turn into round black berries up to 8 mm in diameter.