Chamaedorea elegans

Overview:

Light: Medium light

Watering: Do not allow to dry out, keep soil evenly moist. Don't allow to sit in water, empty saucer after watering. Mist frequently.

Humidity: It's a rare day that we get up early and mist all or our houseplants, or own a greenhouse with humidity control. They seem to do well anyway. To counter the effects of a dry climate we don't let the soil get severely dry on moisture loving plants, we ignore those brown tips on palms, ferns, and dracaenas. Those brown tips are probably caused from lack of humidity, but they don't spoil the overall appearance of the plant. You can always trim the brown tips, whatever you think is unacceptable.

Pruning: As with most palms, remove the old discolored and dead fronds at the bottom of the plant. There can be leaf loss when the plant is acclimating due to low light and lack of humidity. If this happens the small inner leaves dry up and die. Remove them. Pruning to maintain the shape is not needed with this low growing compact palm.

Problems: Spider Mites. Apply a miticide rated for house plants.

Common Name(s): Parlor Palm