Tips for Trimming Palm Trees to Keep Fronds Fresh

Palm trees are iconic symbols of the good life. Just watching these tropical plants sway in the breeze makes you want to hum "Margaritaville" and sip rum. To keep your palm tree postcard perfect, you need to learn proper palm tree pruning techniques.

Unlike most trees and shrubs, pruning palm leaves does not promote growth. Palm tree pruning is done

primarily for aesthetic reasons. One of the biggest mistakes people make with palm trees is pruning them too much. These tips from experts can help you avoid ruining your tree.

1. Follow the 9 to 3 rule

Remove only leaves that hang below the imaginary horizontal lines at 9 and 3 o'clock, says Silvasi. Here's a guide to the clock face for those unfamiliar with analog clocks. This means you shouldn't prune leaves between the hours of 9 p.m. and 3 p.m. "Properly pruned palms are plump with rounded, semicircular tips," says Silvasy. "Don't prune your palm like you're getting a mohawk."

2. Don't prune healthy leaves.

Leave healthy, green leaves alone. Palm trees need leaves to produce food through photosynthesis. Palms store more nutrients in their leaves than other plants, Silvassy says, and they have a unique ability to recycle nutrients. "Palm trees take nutrients from the lower leaves and feed the new leaves at the top of the tree," she says. Cutting back too many leaves robs the tree of nutrients, weakening it and making it more susceptible to wind, insects, and plant diseases.

3. Leave plenty of leaves

Some people believe that cutting back many leaves helps palm trees survive high winds. Not true, says Silvasi. "The more leaves a palm tree has, the better it can withstand wind," she says. "The University of Florida conducted a wind study simulating how palm trees could withstand 100 mph winds, and they found that more leaves protect the palm. Pruning too regularly can make the trunks thinner and weaker, making them more susceptible to breaking in high winds."

4. Remove dead fruit and flower stalks

Pruning fruit and flower stalks releases energy to produce more leaves. And leaves are the reason most of us grow palm trees. Some people cut these stalks when they are still live and full of fruit, because they can create a mess if the fruit falls onto the sidewalk or in the yard.

5. Prune only dead, dying or badly damaged leaves.

Cut off leaves that have been damaged by frost or broken off by a storm. How bad is the damage? "A good rule of thumb is that more than 50 percent of your palm's fronds should be brown before you prune," says Silvasy. Prune any fronds that have died naturally as well. If many of your palm's fronds have turned yellow, don't prune them. Fertilize your tree. It could be that they have a nutritional problem, Silvasi says.

6. Not all palm trees need pruning.

Some species of these tropical plants are self-cleaning, dropping dead leaves without human intervention. Self-cleaning palms include the royal palm, foxtail palm, areca palm, and Christmas palm. Palms that retain their leaves after death include the sabal palm, royal palm, and cabbage palm.

7. Use a pruning saw to prune palm trees.

A pruning saw allows you to trim the leaves without climbing a ladder. For low-growing palm trees, use pruning shears or a handsaw. Cut the leaves close to the trunk. Don't pluck the leaves or cut the trunk, as this can cause wounds that lead to disease.

8. It's OK to leave dead leaves on your palm trees

Some people leave old, dead leaves on their palm trees. These dead leaves form what's known as a palm beard or palm skirt, giving the tree a wild, natural look. "Whether you prune these dead leaves is up to you. It's an aesthetic decision," says Silvasi. "Leaving dead leaves on palm trees will not harm the tree, and palm balsam can help wildlife, as clumps of dead leaves are popular nesting sites for birds."

9. There's No Wrong Time to Prune Palm Trees

Palm trees are pruned primarily for aesthetic reasons, so you can prune them at any time. Prune as soon as dead leaves appear on the tree. If you live in a hurricane-prone area, prune dead leaves before hurricane season to prevent dead leaves from becoming missiles during storms.