If you come across a planted palm tree in the open air in the local regions, it is usually a hemp palm. As a paragon of robust resilience and frugal undemanding, this fan palm has conquered the hearts of gardeners. Are you dealing with open questions about cultivation? Then you will receive a field-tested answer.

The hemp palm originally comes from Asia

Table of Contents

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  1. Plant hemp palm correctly
  2. care tips
  3. Which location is suitable?
  4. What soil does the plant need?
  5. What is the best planting time?
  6. When is flowering time?
  7. Cut hemp palm correctly
  8. Water the hemp palm
  9. Fertilize hemp palm properly
  10. hibernate
  11. Propagate hemp palm
  12. Hemp palm in pot
  13. Hemp palm does not bloom
  14. Yellow leaves
  15. How do I treat brown tips on a cannabis palm tree?
  16. Should I cut off the flower of a cannabis palm tree?
  17. trivia
  18. Beautiful varieties

    19. Plant hemp palm correctly

    Before you plant a fan palm outdoors, it should receive careful care for 3-5 years in the bucket. Only plant your exotic garden dweller in spring. If the hemp palm is planted in April or May, it will be well established in the soil by the start of winter. Allocate a Trachycarpus to a sunny, wind-protected and warm location where the soil is humus-rich and well drained. Dig a planting hole that fully accommodates the long taproot. Enrich the excavation with compost, horn shavings (€32.93), lava granules (€13.99) and bog soil. This is how the procedure works:

    • At the bottom of the pit create a drainage made of expanded clay (19.73€) or pottery shards
    • Take the hemp palm out of the pot and place it in the ground, taking into account the previous planting depth
    • Press the optimized substrate firmly so that no cavities form at the roots
    • Water with soft water and mulch with leaves or grass clippings

    Place a parasol over the palm tree for the first 2 weeks if it is moving outside of the sheltered ambience of a living space or greenhouse.

    care tips

    Exemplary palm care has far fewer hurdles than is generally assumed. If the chosen location meets the requirements to a large extent, maintenance is all about the following aspects:

    • Water the hemp palm thoroughly with soft water when the substrate surface dries
    • Fertilize every 14 days from April to September or apply a slow-release fertilizer in April and June
    • Cut off yellowed, dead fronds so that a residue of approx. 20 cm in length remains on the trunk

    In the bed, the fan palm is hardy to -10 degrees. In severe frost, tie the fronds up and cover them with breathable fleece. Pile the tree grate up to a height of 30 cm with leaves, straw or fir branches.
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    Which location is suitable?

    The hemp palm prefers a sunny location with humus-rich, nutrient-rich and well-drained soil. Although the fronds are stable, a wind-protected location is ideal for harmonious growth. You can also place the plant in the penumbra; here, however, the typical silhouette falls short of expectations.
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    What soil does the plant need?

    A hemp palm should spend its first years of life in a bucket filled with a permeable, humus-rich substrate. If you choose a loose soil with coarse components that has a slightly acidic pH value, the plant feels in good hands. Older specimens will thrive in any good garden soil, as long as it is nutritious and well-drained. The soil acid value recedes into the background with advancing age. Nevertheless, it is an advantage if you optimize loamy garden soil with leaf compost or peat and a few handfuls of lava granules.
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    What is the best planting time?

    Only plant a hemp palm outdoors in spring. During the months of April and May, a date with mild, dry weather is an option. In this way, the palm tree has a sufficiently long phase to take root in the soil by winter. If you cultivate the fan palm in a tub and overwinter in the house, planting is possible at any time during the growing season.

    When is flowering time?

    From April to June, yellow to yellowish-green panicle flowers appear on older hemp palms. Pollination only takes place when both a palm tree with male flowers and a specimen with female flowers are in the immediate vicinity or some hermaphroditic flowers form next to the female ones. If fertilization takes place, the plant develops dark blue, kidney-shaped berries in autumn.

    Cut hemp palm correctly

    Only cut off the dead, yellow or brown discolored leaves with a sharp knife. Wait until a frond has completely died before pruning. Until then, it still releases valuable nutrients to the palm tree. Do not cut into healthy tissue and leave a 10-20 cm remnant of the leaf sheath on the trunk. As a result, this tends downwards and dissolves into countless fibers. This creates the typical, hairy appearance of the palm trunk. Please note that a hemp palm is never cut off at the top. Here is the only vegetation point.
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    Water the hemp palm

    Water a fan palm regularly and thoroughly without waterlogging. Regular watering will encourage growth, especially during dry summer weather. The exotic plant should not be bothered with hard tap water. Instead, use collected rainwater or soft pond water so that the lime content in the substrate does not reach harmful alkaline levels.
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    Fertilize hemp palm properly

    Fertilize a hemp palm every 14 days from April to September with a nitrogen-rich palm fertilizer. Alternatively, administer a long-term preparation in April and June. A liquid fertilizer is recommended for keeping buckets, as it is easier to dose and apply. In the bed, a combined nutrient supply can also be considered. After a mineral start fertilization in April, a portion of compost with horn shavings takes over the food supply every 2 weeks.
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    hibernate

    A snow-covered palm tree evokes astonished looks over the garden fence in the local regions. Thanks to a hardy hemp palm, you can accomplish the gardening feat without extensive prior knowledge. How to overwinter a fan palm successfully:

    • From -10 degrees Celsius tie the fronds together upright
    • To protect the sensitive palm heart, put a breathable fleece over it
    • Cover the tree disc with leaves, straw and needles
    • Water occasionally during frost on a mild day

    In the tub, on the other hand, the outdoor season for a fan palm ends at -5 degrees Celsius. Due to the exposed location of the root ball, it freezes through within a short time. Therefore, clear the plant in good time. With regard to light and temperature conditions, the hemp palm proves to be flexible. Wintering in a bright, frost-free room at 5-8 degrees Celsius is just as tolerated as staying in a heated, sunny living room at 20 degrees. Adjust the water supply to the temperature conditions accordingly.
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    Propagate hemp palm

    The only way to propagate is by sowing seeds. In view of the high effort due to a germination time of 12-14 months, this project is rarely tackled by hobby gardeners.
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    Hemp palm in pot

    If you cultivate a young hemp palm in a pot for the first few years, the plant will prepare itself perfectly in this protected environment for later transplanting outdoors. Since the fan palm always spends several years in the same container and substrate, the following process is of the utmost relevance when planting:

    • Install a drainage system made of potsherds or expanded clay (no grit or gravel) over the water drain in the deep palm tub.
    • Spread an air- and water-permeable fleece over it so that no crumbs of earth get caught in between
    • Fill in a high-quality, permeable and slightly acidic palm soil halfway up
    • Repot the young hemp palm and plant it in the substrate while maintaining the previous planting depth

    Water the young plant thoroughly with soft water and place it in a semi-shady spot for a few days, before moving to a sunny spot after 8-10 days. Fertilize for the first time after 6 weeks.

    Hemp palm does not bloom

    The hemp palm only decides to flower under optimal conditions at an advanced age. Be patient during the first 5-8 years. If an older specimen is not flowering, check site conditions. A hemp palm tree only decides to let its flowers sprout in sun-drenched, sheltered locations. If the palm tree lacks nutrients or suffers from drought stress, it will not flower either.

    Yellow leaves

    If the fan leaves gradually turn yellow from the tips, this is a completely natural process. The frond is nearing the end of its lifespan and releasing its remaining nutrients to the palm. Since a yellow leaf is not usually shed, cut it off. A remainder of 20 cm in length remains on the trunk. If a hemp palm does not undergo this horticultural intervention, the yellow leaves gather under the green fronds over the years, so that the crown takes on an elongated shape.
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    How do I treat brown tips on a cannabis palm tree?

    As a result of dry heating air or slight frostbite, the tips of a palm frond can turn brown. Cut off the discolored areas with sharp scissors, leaving a small 1mm edge of brown tissue on the leaf. If the damage is due to dry air, spray the hemp palm with soft water every 2 days. Protect the plant against renewed frostbite by tying the fronds together upright in heavy frost and protecting them with garden fleece.

    Should I cut off the flower of a cannabis palm tree?

    The growth of male and female flowers takes a lot of strength from a hemp palm. As a rule, the already leisurely growth then slows down further. In addition, wilted blooms don't fall off, instead hanging sadly down the trunk on wrist-thick stalks. Therefore, cut off a hemp palm flower unless you intend to harvest the seeds.
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    trivia

    Due to its robust growth and winter hardiness, the hemp palm has meanwhile found a place on the black list of invasive plants. In Switzerland, experts are even sounding the alarm, as the fan palm is spreading more and more in the mountain forests and threatening the native flora and fauna. For the hobby gardener, this aspect is, on the one hand, confirmation that the palm tree can survive a Central European winter in the garden without any problems. On the other hand, special care is required to prevent a palm invasion. This includes the fact that clippings should not be disposed of in the forest. The flowers, which are not particularly decorative anyway, are cut off before seed formation. Fruit clippings are ideally disposed of at the local incinerator.

    Beautiful varieties

    • Chinese hemp palm: The most popular fan palm for the garden, balcony and living room with a growth height of 200-400 cm
    • Darjeeling: Impresses with fir-green fronds up to 1 m in diameter and robust winter hardiness
    • Double trunks: Premium variety among the hemp palms with a slender trunk and semi-circular fans
    • Wagner's hemp palm: Small variety, ideal for keeping in tubs and small gardens

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