Posted by Walt Coverings should always be of a material that is less conductive to heat flow, such as a cotton based blanket, sheets, etc. If you cover with a blanket, and then plastic, that's okay, as the plastic won't be touching the leaves. In the future, I would cover your pygmy dates with an insulative covering that completely drapes down to the ground, so that there is no open air space around the palms. So in effect you would have a tent over the palm. Then I would place a heat source inside to elevate the temperature. You only need enough heat to keep the palms in the high 20s. (high 20s won't hurt the palm as long as it's just an overnight thing). A good heat source to use is things like an old electric frying skillet as they should give off enough heat to keep the tent in the 30s, even if the outside air gets down to 17 degrees. You can use high wattage light bulbs and even an electric space heater, just be careful not to touch the palm directly with any heat source. Lest you think a typical 1500 watt space heater might be too hot, it won't be when the temperature of the air around it is 20 degrees, or even 30 degrees. The air blowing out of the heater will feel cool as it can't warm up the cold air coming into the heater like it would with 65-70 degree air that would be typical in your home. Since I'm responding 2-1/2 weeks since you posted, you should be able to tell if your pygmy dates are still living. If so, they should recover by the end of this summer. I've seen pygmy dates totally fried (browned) and they regrow new fronds rather quickly. But 17 degrees is very low and they may not be able to take that kind of temperature. I've seen pygmy dates take low 20s and come back strong. I would cut all dead/brown fronds and leaves off the palm (if no more freezes are likely) but leave any or part of fronds with green still left in them, as your palms need all the green leaf they can to help recover (photosynthesis to make food for the palm). I'd also drench the growth bud (area where the new fronds emerge) with a copper sulfate fungicide or hydrogen peroxide. This should kill excess bacteria that typically increase when a palm suffers cold damage. The bacterial can kill the growth bud.
on 2/21/2007, 5:07 am, in reply to "Pygmy Date Palm after frost"
68.56.111.196
Plastic covering will conduct heat (what little there is in a palm/leaf) from the palm and to the cold air (heat always flows from hot to cold).
--Previous Message--
: I have 4 pygmy date palms that were very
: healthy until we had 3 nights of
: freezing weather. The coldest it got
: was 17 degrees. I covered them with
: plastic bags which I found out later
: was the wrong thing to do. All of the
: fronds are dead and brown although
: there is one or two fronds that are
: still green. Is there any way of
: telling if they are going to survive?
: or should I just replace them.
:
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