Nutritional Deficiencies

Potassium ⎮ Magnesium ⎮ Boron ⎮ Manganese ⎮ Iron ⎮ Nitrogen

Potassium Deficiency:

How Common In Our Area? Potassium is the most common nutritional deficiency in our area

Is New Growth or Old Growth Affected? Old growth is affected by potassium deficiency

How Long Will It Take to Correct? The whole canopy of the palm has to be replaced with new fronds before a change can be seen. Once the correct fertilizer is applied, this can take up to 3-4 years on a large palm like a pineapple palm.

Is It Commonly Confused With Any Other Nutritional Deficiency? Potassium deficiency is sometimes confused with Magnesium deficiency

Note: Do NOT remove any fronds of a palm with Potassium deficiency unless they are 100% dead, meaning the frond is 100% brown with no green on it.

Symptoms of Potassium Deficiency:

Yellowing w/ necrotic tips
If you hold it up to sunlight, you will see a yellow paint splattered look

Examples of Potassium Deficiency:

Foxtail Palm

A close up of a Foxtail Palm (Wodyetia bifurcata) with potassium deficiency. Notice the older fronds have more yellowing than the newer fronds.

Foxtail Palm

An example of a Foxtail Palm (Wodyetia bifurcata) with potassium deficiency.

Canary Island Date Palm

An example of a Canary Island Date Palm (Phoenix canariensis) with potassium deficiency.

Canary Island Date Palm

An close up of a Canary Island Date Palm (Phoenix canariensis) with potassium deficiency. Note the necrotic tips on the oldest fronds.

Pygmy Date Palm

An example of a Pygmy Date Palm (Phoenix roebelenii) with potassium and manganese deficiencies.

Pygmy Date Palm

A close up view of a Pygmy Date Palm (Phoenix roebelenii) frond with potassium and manganese deficiencies. The manganese affects the frond closer to the trunk and the potassium affects the frond towards the tip.

Pygmy Date Palm

Another close up view of a Pygmy Date Palm (Phoenix roebelenii) frond with potassium and manganese deficiencies.

Pygmy Date Palm

Another example of a Pygmy Date Palm (Phoenix roebelenii) with potassium deficiency.

Magnesium Deficiency:

How Common In Our Area? Potassium is a very common nutritional deficiency in our area

Is New Growth or Old Growth Affected? Old growth is affected by magnesium deficiency

How Long Will It Take to Correct? The whole canopy of the palm has to be replaced with new fronds before a change can be seen. Once the correct fertilizer is applied, this can take up to 3-4 years on a large palm like a pineapple palm.

Is It Commonly Confused With Any Other Nutritional Deficiency? Magnesium deficiency is sometimes confused with Potassium deficiency

Note: Do NOT remove any fronds of a palm with Magnesium deficiency unless they are 100% dead, meaning the frond is 100% brown with no green on it.

Symptoms of Magnesium Deficiency:

Distinct dark green “V” pattern with the widest point of the “V” being closer to the trunk, and the point of the “V” being towards the top of the frond. Inside the “V” is dark green, and outside the “V” is yellow or orange

Examples of Magnesium Deficiency:

Senegal Date Palm

On this Senegal Date palm (Phoenix reclinata) you can see the sharp contrast between the green and the yellow on the fronds. This is a symptom of magnesium deficiency.

Senegal Date Palm

A close up of the fronds on a Senegal Date palm (Phoenix reclinata) with magnesium deficiency. Note the “V” pattern at the center of the frond.

Senegal Date Palm

Another close up showing the symptoms of magnesium deficiency on the fronds of a Senegal Date palm (Phoenix reclinata).

Canary Island Date Palm

An example of a Phoenix canariensis with magnesium deficiency. Note: the necrotic tips of the fronds are a symptom of potassium deficiency, not magnesium deficiency. This palm has both magnesium and potassium deficiencies.

Boron Deficiency:

How Common In Our Area? Boron is a very common nutritional deficiency in our area

Is New Growth or Old Growth Affected? New growth is affected by Boron deficiency

How Long Will It Take to Correct? It will take at least 6 months after proper fertilization is started before a change is seen in the new growth.

What does the Deficiency Do? Boron deficiency mutates cellular growth as fronds form in the bud of the palm.

Symptoms of Boron Deficiency:

Distorted fronds
“Accordion” fronds
“Lightning Bolt” fronds
Compressed Fronds
Necrosis
Trunk may sometimes bend

Examples of Boron Deficiency:

Manganese Deficiency:

How Common In Our Area? Manganese is a common nutritional deficiency in our area

Is New Growth or Old Growth Affected? New growth is affected by Manganese deficiency

How Long Will It Take to Correct? It will take at least 6 months after proper fertilization is started before a change is seen in the new growth.

Symptoms of Boron Deficiency:

Necrotic and frizzled growth, a.k.a. “frizzletop”
“frizzletop” is worse towards the base of the fronds/the trunk

Examples of Manganese Deficiency:

Pygmy Date Palm

Because manganese deficiency affects new growth, once the palm starts to receive proper nutrition through proper fertilizer treatments, the once new (and manganese deficient) growth becomes old growth, and the new growth will be green and healthy, as shown in this Pygmy Date Palm (Phoenix roebelinii).

Pygmy Date Palm

An example of a mild chronic case of manganese deficiency in a Pygmy Date Palm (Phoenix roebelenii).

Pygmy Date Palm

A close up of the fronds of a Pygmy Date palm (phoenix roebelenii) with manganese deficiency. The leaflets at the base of the frond are curled and necrotic.

Pygmy Date Palm

Another example of manganese deficiency in a Pygmy Date palm (Phoenix roebelenii).

Pygmy Date Palm

Close up of a Pygmy Date palm (Phoenix roebelenii) frond with potassium and manganese deficiency. Note the manganese affects the frond closer to the trunk and the potassium affects the frond towards the frond’s tip.

Foxtail Palm

This Foxtail palm (Woyetia bifurcata) has necrosis on the old fronds closest to the trunk. This indicates that there was Manganese deficiency. However, the new growth is healthy as the deficiency has been corrected by fertilizer treatments.

Pygmy Date Palm

Another example of a Pygmy Date palm (Phoenix roebelenii) with manganese deficiency. Notice how the new growth is affected.

Pygmy Date Palm

An advanced case of manganese deficiency in a Pygmy Date palm (Phoenix roebelenii). At this point, it is difficult to correct the deficiency.

Foxtail Palm

A Foxtail palm (Wodyetia bifurcata) with manganese deficiency. You can tell that the leaflets closer to the center of the palm are curled, yellow, and necrotic.

Queen Palm

The palm on the right is a Syagrus romanzoffiana (Queen Palm) with severe Manganese deficiency.

Royal Palms

Three Roystonea regia (Royal Palms). The palm on the left is fairly healthy, the palm in the middle has extremely severe manganese deficiency, and the palm on the right also has manganese deficiency. This illustrates the progression of manganese deficiency in palms, as well as how two palms of the same species, in the same soil, can have varying levels of deficiency.

Royal Palm

This is a close up of the severe manganese deficiency on a Roystonea regia (Royal palm). This shows the importance of regular fertilizer applications, as once a palm is this deficient it is very hard to correct the deficiency. On the other hand, when signs of a deficiency are first seen, if the correct fertilizer program is started, there are much higher chances of the palm’s survival. Better yet, fertilizer should be considered a preventative measure.

Iron Deficiency:

How Common In Our Area? Iron is a less common nutritional deficiency in our area, although it is more likely on the Keys than on the mainland

Is New Growth or Old Growth Affected? New growth is affected by Iron deficiency

How Long Will It Take to Correct? It will take at least 6 months after proper fertilization is started before a change is seen in the new growth.

What Can Cause This Deficiency? The palm being planted too deep, poor soil aeration, high soil pH, excessive amounts of Mn, and overwatering can all cause Iron deficiency.

Symptoms of Iron Deficiency:

chlorotic new growth
the chlorotic growth starts at the top and works its way down the canopy

Examples of Iron Deficiency:

Nitrogen Deficiency:

How Common In Our Area? Nitrogen is a less common nutritional deficiency in the landscape in our area, although it is more common in potted palms

Symptoms of Nitrogen Deficiency:

overall chlorosis on fronds, not just on the tips of fronds
the chlorosis starts at the bottom of the canopy and works its way towards the top