The tall, straight queen palm tree (Syagrus romanzoffianum) is well suited to U.S. Department of Agriculture hardiness zones 9b through 11. It grows rapidly to heights of 30 to 40 feet, so it should not be planted under power wires. Its arching fronds spread to diameters of about 20 feet. The queen palm is low maintenance if planted in a sunny location with good drainage, requiring relatively little water after three years of age. Although the queen palm rarely needs pruning, aside from removing spent fronds, if it is exposed to the occasional cold snap, careful pruning becomes necessary.
Wait before pruning the queen palm until all danger of further freezing weather has passed. Although freezing damage can be ugly, do not remove any fronds because even damaged fronds can insulate the queen palm in subsequent cold weather. Wait an additional period of time until new growth appears on your queen palm.
Set a ladder against the queen palm that has freezing damage if the queen palm is too tall for you to comfortably reach the fronds. Position the ladder so that the bottom is on a solid, level surface. Extend the ladder so its top is within a foot or two of the lowest palm fronds.
Climb carefully to the fronds of the queen palm. Cut off only completely brown fronds with a pruning saw next to the trunk, but do not cut the trunk tissue.
Remove only brown portions on the far ends of fronds that still have green tissue near the trunk. Cut the frond as near the brown portion as possible but make the cut in live, green tissue.
Leave any green fronds that have yellow speckles untouched. Do not remove any live tissue of the queen palm.
Monitor the queen palm over the next few months. If you see collapsed fronds or deformed, abnormal new fronds appear, it is an indication of trunk damage. If the damage is too extensive, the tree may die.
Things You Will Need
- Extension ladder
- Pruning saw
- Because queen palms grow so tall, hire a professional palm trimming service for pruning extremely tall specimens after freezing to avoid putting yourself in danger on a ladder.
- If the queen palm continues to decline, enlist a professional tree removal service to remove it before it becomes a danger to power lines, houses or people in the immediate area.
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