Date Palm
Phoenix species. ARECACEAE (PALMAE).
Planting and Growing Date Palm Trees
You’ll find everything you need to know to plant and grow date palm trees in the accompanying table’s tabs:
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- Flowers, foliage, and dates of date palm
- Growing conditions for date palm
- When to plant date palm
- How to plant date palm
- How to prune date palm
- Watering, fertilizing, and care of date palm
- Landscape uses of date palm
- Pest and disease control for date palm
Growing Date Palm Trees
About 17 species of slow-growing, erect, round-crowned, evergreen palms, 6–60 ft. (1.8–18 m) tall, 6–50 ft. (1.8–15 m) wide, with shiny, blue or gray green, stiff leaflets, to 2 ft. (60 cm) long, radiating from both sides of long, woody, arched, leafstalks, 2–10 ft. (60–305 cm) long. Develops suckers.
Date Palm Planting and Care Guide
Flowers and Dates
Many small, white flowers on clustered bracts in the foliage crown, in spring– summer, form fleshy, egg-shaped, seed-filled, edible and inedible dates, 3/4–3 in. (19–75 mm) long, in autumn.
Best Climates
U.S.D.A. Plant Hardiness Zones 7–11. Semi-hardy. Best in mild-winter, seaside climates.
Soil Type and Fertility
Moist to damp, well-drained, sandy soil. Fertility: Average. 6.5–8.0 pH. Best in rich soils.
Where and How to Plant
Full sun; some species tolerate partial shade. Space as recommended for species.
Proper Care
Easy. Keep moist until established; drought tolerant thereafter. Fertilize annually in spring. Prune to remove dried leafstalks at trunk. Sterilize all pruning equipment before and after pruning to avoid spreading fatal palm fusarium wilt between trees. Propagate by seed, suckers.
About This Species
Good choice for accents, barriers, groups, hedges in meadow, seaside gardens and roadside plantings. Drops fronds, fruit, requiring maintenance. Smog tolerant. Pest and disease resistant.