Tenerife forum

[karlb]

Maybe someone, Bard thats you lol, can give me a few pointers.

Everyone I ask gives different advice.

How much water, where and when.

Twice a week in summer, once in Winter ??

Should I water in an evening because I was told watering in the day burns the leaves OR if you do not touch the leaves the water can burn the roots if its hot.

At night, should I water and spray leaves or just not touch them and water only the soil.

Should I water until I can see water coming from the drain holes?

Someone also said they use bottled water !!! because tap water has soo many impurities its harmful for the plants.

Thank you for any advice.

Here are my latest plants of which I have 10 in large plant trays. Anyone know what the white stuff is on the leaves. Limescale and calcium maybe ? How do I get rid of it?



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[bardofely]

I water at the base and like to keep the soil just damp but not wet, although it really depends on what plants you have and what the air temperature is like. Some plants will rot if they stay damp too long and its too cold. Generally here down south its warm and most plants will take a lot of water but that doesn't mean keep them wet.

Some plants here don't grow much if at all in the summer so they don't need any water. Water is needed by plants that are growing and flowering.

It also depends where they are and what they are in. A plant in a shaded location or indoors loses water much slower than one in full sun. A plant exposed to wind and sun on a balcony or wall will dry out quicker than one in a sheltered location. A plant in a pot will dry out quicker than one in a large tub or better still in the ground. Watering in the evening is best I'd say because in the heat of the day it will evaporate and can also burn plants to varying degrees especially if it goes on the leaves.

Try not to leave water in saucers under potted plants. It depends on what compost you use - some types absorb water a lot easier.

Clay pots are much much better than plastic if you can get them!

Bottled water is better but far more expensive! Unless you are going to eat the plants it doesn't make much difference though - the plants don't seem to worry about impurities in the water.

The white stuff may be mealy bug or wooly aphids if its sticky and you can see small flattish insects under it. These pests spread quickly and also go in the roots so are a real nuisance. I don't like pesticides so I squash them if they are above ground. It's impossible to say from the photo. It might just be part of the plant.

Good luck!
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[rob]

These look like Canarian palms to me. Were they inside or in the shade when you bought them? They look as though they may be suffering from sunburn.... yes plants can suffer from that.
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[andyfowles]

Rob, you can't be suggesting Karl uses factor 40 on his plants surely

We have a 'pot tree' (not a bonsai) from the maple family and it's leaves can be burnt even in the UK sunshine, so is it definitely possible. It's leaves are not the traditional canadian flag maple leaf but much 'thinner' and 'finer'

I've seen the same type of white, sticky coating as Karl has posted on a lot of similar narrow leaved plants around South Tenerife and often wondered what exactly it was. Some years appear to be worse than others for it, not sure if some years they've been 'sprayed' or whether the weather has an effect.
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[bardofely]

Here is a site with photos of some types of woolly aphid. They can get very bad here especially if there's no rain to wash them off. They usually die down in the winter.

http://bugguide.net/node/view/7465/bgimage

And here's info and pics of mealy bugs:
http://www.mda.state.mn.us/plants/insects/plantscape/mealybugs.htm
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[karlb]

Many many thanks for taking time to give me advice.

The white stuff is like a powdery coating and rubs off, as suggested a good hose of water seems to get rid of it but it does come back sometimes.

They are Canarian Palms if those are the ones that look like pineapples when they get big.

These plants are in full sun most of the day, but so are all the others lining the roads so I thought they would be ok. I did ask at the garden centre for the most durable plants that were difficult to kill, still looked green after being in the sun, were ok to be in the sun and were easy to look after.

Did he see me coming lol ?????


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[bardofely]

They only end up looking like pineapples because people cut the leaves off. If you find one growing wild in an inaccessible place where people leave them alone - very rare indeed - you find a huge mass of leaves and the palm is much shorter. I am not sure what they look like if left entirely alone by people for a very long time because I have no examples to look at seeing as all the so-called wild groves in places like Masca have been pruned. Photos in books and sites all have pruned palms too.

I am of the opinion that the plant doesn't naturally grow a high trunk but is forced to so it has more leaves, which it needs to feed and breathe through. Thus if you cut off the ones it has, it must grow upwards to create more or die! Palm trees as we see them are in an artifically created way because they have had their leaves pruned away.

If you look at them they don't drop the leaf stubs ever and on many these have been cut away by people to make a smooth trunk. I assume that if people didn't do this that each palm would be surrounded by a huge amount of dead leaves and would be much shorter. There is one species that they don't cut the dead leaves from but why this one and not the others I don't know. It is said that the dead leaves are a fire hazard but I would say that means all dead leaves not just those on Canarian palms and some other species. It is a mystery!

They do the same to the Dragon Trees although sometimes this saves their lives because the lower leaves are covered in scale insects, which if they are removed gives the plant a chance to recover by growing new leaves on top. Often you see Dragos this has failed on and they die. I used to think it was a very tough plant but have changed my mind - it can be killed by insects and blown down in storms!
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[karlb]

Many thanks again Bard

I have trimmed the bottom stems from my plant as thats what I thought you needed to do. After a while the bottom ones droop and discolour anyhow.

I thought I was helping it.


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[bardofely]

[karlb]

Thanks again Bard, glad you mentioned weedkiller.

There are little 'things' popping up around the base of my Canarian Palms, obviously weeds. I have just been trying to pull them up and get as much of the root as possible.

I have not used any weedkiller as I cannot understand how it only attacks the weed and not the plants. Then again does the weed root not eventually wrap its roots around and plant roots and cause it harm or damage...or even death !!!

Thanks again.
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[bardofely]

[rob]

My question about where the plants were when you bought them was serious. Most garden centres keep their plants in semi shade, this makes them easier to care for but if you put them straight into full sunlight when you buy them they (like humans) can get sun/wind burnt. You need to harden them off gradually just like taking plants from a warm greenhouse to the outside.
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[karlb]

We went to the garden centre in Fanabe and went straight outside to look at plants that were in constant sun and looking green. These ones were already out there and I was told they would be fine in the sun all day long.


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