Kentia Palm Care
Common Name: Kentia Palm, Sentry Palm, Thatch Leaf Palm
Scientific Name: Howeia Forsteriana
Lighting: Moderate
Watering: Moderate
The Kentia Palm is characterized by a series of arching feather-shaped fronds radiating from small trunks in a dark green color. Kentia Palms are slow growers so do not expect mass growth. On the other end, they are very durable house plants and therefore can be enjoyed for many years.
Kentia (Sentry, Thatch Leaf) Palms are not tolerable to severe dryness or continual over watering. They prefer to be moist much of the time, however do allow the top 1 to 2 inches of soil to dry before watering again. If frond tips are turning brown and the fronds are droopy, you are probably not watering the plant enough. On the opposite side, if the leaf tips are yellowing then becoming brown, chances are you are over watering the palm. The Kentia, like many palms, is extremely sensitive to chemicals in the water. Therefore be sure to use untreated water for this house plant and all your palms.
The Kentia palm prefers bright, indirect light but will also tolerate lower light levels. In lower light levels the plant's appearance will seem fine; however it just won't quite have the healthy look preferred. If you notice spotting on the upper fronds, the plant may be getting too much bright light, so try and move it to an area with a lower amount of direct sunlight.
Pests are usually not a problem with this house plant. Spider mites may appear. If so, try my home remedy that really hasn't failed me, of spraying the plant twice a day with a soapy dishwater mixture. If that does not work, go to your local gardening center and they can instruct you on which product to use.
Please share you tips on this common houseplant!!
Labels: palms
posted by drayas @ 10:57 AM
20 Comments:
we recently got a kentia palm and this post was quite helpful in taking care of the plant.
I'm glad you found the site helpful. I am trying to get more pictures for the website so its easier to identify what plant you need information on.
Thanks,
drayas
Very Very Helpfull, Thanks For the Information
I was told by a nursery farmer to add vinegar to soapy water when mixing a nonchemical spray for mites, white flys, etc. I add a couple of jiggers of apple vinegar to a standard spray bottle of semi-soapy water. I find that this mixture seems to work faster than the plain soapy water.
I just recently bought a Kentia palm but there are black spots/streaks all over the bases of the fronds and all along the stems. The black spots/streaks are also on the brown shell. Along with this the fronds are brown and dried at the tips and are drooping. I water it every 4-7 days depending on the top 2 inches of recommended dryness. Its close to the patio door with a good amount of indirect light. Is there anything i can do to help make it healthier??
just_me,
Well there are a couple possibilities. I would use trial and error. Try changing one of the below things and see if improvement. If not, try the next.
1) Sometimes when the frond tips turn brown and the fronds are droopy, the plant may not be receiving enough water. These plants like a lot of water, so try providing one extra watering in your normal schedule. If within a week you don't see improvement try the next.
2) Spotting on the fronds can sometimes be caused by the palm getting too much bright light. Try moving it to an area with a lower amount of direct sunlight.
3) Lastly, the plant may be infested with some type of pest. Spray the plant twice a day with a soapy dishwater mixture. This will usually take care of the pests.
Please keep me informed and let me know if any of these ideas work.
Thank you,
drayas
Although all info on these plants labels them "easy" they are quite exacting in requirements. Seems they prefer the cool spectrum of temps. Also, do not expect them to thrive in a dark corner. In low light, they simply survive. They are sensitive to chemicals and like fresh air.
Hi, thank you for this page, it is very useful for understanding the plant. I have a different problem with my plant. I have two stems of Kentias in the same pot growing. One of them is very short and has 6 fronds/leaves and the other is very tall (with very skinny stem) and 7 fronds/leaves. Although they both seem to be doing fine, the tall one needs support to stand up right, otherwise it leans one way and it may some day break. My question is (I tried this in other types of plants and it worked), can I cut the tall one from its stem and replant it? If it's possible, do I put it in water first and wait for it to root before planting into soil? Any advice is greatly appreciated. Thanks again for writing this blog!
Cem
bitmedia,
I'm not sure if you can cut and simply re-root a Kentia palm. I've honestly never tried it and am having problems finding information.
Can any of my readers helps us out?
Otherwise can you stake the tall one up?
Thanks,
drayas
Thank you for your reply Drayas.
It's currently staked up. But the stem is way too thin, it just looks unhealthy to me. I am going to wait a little longer to see if any one else offers more knowledge on this subject and eventually will cut and try to re-root. I will post my findings =)
Thank you again for this website!!
kentia can be grown from seeds only. Unlike other plants leaves are not a mean of propagation.
Hi there - I recently bought a Kentia palm which is very tall - about 7 ft. - should I repot it straight away? Do they need to have lots of room in the soil - am not very experienced with house plants. Thanks for the very useful information.
Hello,
Unless your palm seems to be running out of room, I would wait to repot. Repotting usually puts the plant into a little shock. Let it get adjusted to its new home first.
Thanks,
drayas
My house became infested with gnats which we traced to a Kentia palm in our dining room. Any suggestions on how to rid the plant and house of gnats. The palm has been relegated to the shaded east facing porch but may be getting too much light.
Hello,
Spray the plant with a soapy dishwater mixture twice a day. If the gnats are not lowering than go to a garden center and pick up a stronger insecticide.
Thanks,
drayas
Hi we recently bought a Kentia Palm and were told to water it with just over 2 litres of water every 3 weeks. It has been about 2 weeks now since we watered for the first time, and the soil is still damp at the top.
However the middle and top level leaf tips are going brown and crispy. I am not sure what to do?
We bought it potted in soil with a built in self watering system which we are not using yet, the advice was to wait intil spring to use it.
Any ideas what to do regarding the leaves?
Great site btw.
Thanks
Jamie
Thanks.
Hello, I have a Kentia Palm which we purchased about two years ago. The plant is about 7 feet tall and has seven trunks (lacking a better word). Everything was fine with the plant for quite a while, aside from little browning (less than one inch long) on the tips of lower fronds. About two months ago, in September, the palm started to look sick, with lower fronds progressively browning from the tips and smaller frond drooping. In addition, there is some white spotting/streaking along the "veins" of some leaves. After two months, one trunk has only one frond left, which can't support its weight anymore. Top (largest) fronds on other trunks are fine. In general, the plant looks sick and lacks energy.
Its room has temperature around 60F (annual range 56F to 68F) and average humidity 85-90%. We live on Pacific coast in CA.
Since evaporation is slow in our climate, I'm trying to be very careful about over watering, allowing top 2 inches to dry completely (takes at least 2-3 weeks to achieve).
Is there anything I can do to save the plant? Any advise will be greatly appreciated.
Thanks!
Alex.
Hi,
I have a similar problem to Jamie but don't see the answer. Since purchasing my plant from a very reputable store, it's leaves have continued to get brown and crispy. The leaves start by looking a little "stressed", less supple to the touch, then they start to brown at the end, then the stalk gets yellow and the whole frond turns really brown and crispy. Originally I was watering every 7-10 days, located near a floor to ceiling window that gets minimum sun through a sheer curtain. I called the store and after troubleshooting they decided I was underwatering. I've been watering more and moving it in front of the window and pulling back the curtain for more sun - nothing seems to work. It's getting worse. I do live in Chicago so there is a tiny bit of cold air near this window.
What should I do?
Hi Sam,
This problem hasn't resolved for me but we called the company back and they told me to water at least 2 litres every 3-4 days, which has helped the rest of the plan but the bottom stalks have continuted to go brown and crispy, but the rest of the plant looks great.
Hoping this is just an issue you get with most plants where some stalks may die anyway,.
Post a Comment
<< Home