Fishtail Palm Care Guide
The Fishtail Palm
AKA Caryota mitis
With its stunning profusion of airy foliage and tall silhouette, the Fishtail Palm is a gorgeous, low-maintenance floor plant that casts delightful, dappled shadows in light-filled spaces. Native to Southeast Asia, the Fishtail Palm thrives in bright to medium-light environments.
Light
Needs bright indirect or direct light, next to a window is best
Will not tolerate low light environments
Water
Keep the just slightly moist — water when the top 1-2 inches of soil is dry
Note that despite this plant’s preference for moisture, it is relatively drought tolerant
Growth
With the right conditions, the Fishtail Palm can be a fast grower
Can be fertilized monthly during spring and summer
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Common problems with the Fishtail Palm
Brown Leaf Tips with Yellow “Halo” - Low Humidity
Symptom - Leaf tips exhibiting browning and yellowing
Cause - Low humidity, dry environment with heat/AC
Remedy - Mist Fishtail Palm x2 weekly
Leaves Yellowing in Quick Succession - Overwatering
Symptom - Many leaves becoming yellow over short period of time
Cause - Overwatering
Remedy - Only water Fishtail Palm when top two inches of topsoil are dry. If overwatered, remove palm (still within its plastic nursery pot) from ceramic planter. If excess water has pooled in planter, dump it out and allow plant to dry before watering again.
Leaves Yellow and Dry: Too Much Direct Sun or Underwatering
Symptom - Dry, yellowing leaves
Cause - Excess of direct sunlightm underwatering
Remedy - Water Fishtail Palm consistently when topsoil is dry. Keep palm a few feet from windows to avoid scorching.
How to maintain a beautiful and healthy Fishtail Palm
Maintenance - A little love will go a long way with your Fishtail Palm!
Trimming & reshaping - You can keep your Fishtail Palm looking fresh by trimming of leaves that exhibit a large degree of yellowing/browning. Cut the leaves’ stems as close to the base of plant as possible with clean, sharp scissors or shears.
Cleaning - Clean your Fishtail Palm’s foliage by gently wiping its fronds with a soft cloth. Removing dust from the Palm’s foliage allows it to photosynthesize with ease, which supports its overall health and appearance.Repotting - Houseplants grow much slower than they would in the wild. Depending on the size of your plant and the density of the roots, Fishtail Palms can be repotted every three years to provide fresh nutrients and encourage new growth.
When to repot - when the roots circle the pot tightly and begin to stick out, it’s time to move them to a new home.
Pot sizing - if you want your plant to grow taller, find a nursery pot that’s 2” in diameter larger than the current pot. If you want your plant to stay the same height, you can reuse the same pot and simply change the soil.
Get your hands dirty - spread out newspaper on the floor, remove the plant from the pot and shake off as much of the old soil as possible so that you have clean roots. Place the plant in the center of the pot, add new soil and pat down firmly. Water the soil thoroughly and place the plant in an area with bright indirect light. Your plant will take 2-4 weeks to settle from the shock and adjust to its new home.
How to Propagate the Fishtail Palm
As with most palms, the only way to propagate a Fishtail Palm is by germinating the seeds. However, this can be very time-consuming (germination takes around eight months) and difficult to achieve indoors. Propagating Fishtail Palms is best left to professional growers.
The Fishtail Palm
A stunning plant with airy foliage that resembles delicate fishtails.