[villages07]

We have two queen palms that have been in the ground for four years. Never had the golden seed pods til just recently. On the larger tree, we have already cut down two pods (one bloomed, the other in the husk) and looks like there are two more pods growing. I guess I am surprised to have four concurrent pods on one tree. The smaller tree had one pod still in the husk that we have cut down.

For those of you with a green thumb or more experience with queens....is this unusual? Any other explanation? I've looked at a couple of websites but haven't come across any discussion on multiple pods.

[downeaster]

Originally Posted by villages07

We have two queen palms that have been in the ground for four years. Never had the golden seed pods til just recently. On the larger tree, we have already cut down two pods (one bloomed, the other in the husk) and looks like there are two more pods growing. I guess I am surprised to have four concurrent pods on one tree. The smaller tree had one pod still in the husk that we have cut down.

For those of you with a green thumb or more experience with queens....is this unusual? Any other explanation? I've looked at a couple of websites but haven't come across any discussion on multiple pods.

As a former queen palm owner I would say there is nothing unusual happening with you palms. Multiple pods are not uncommon.

Be careful cutting the pods off the tree. They are very heavy so make sure they fall away from you. Don't let them fall on other plants.

[batman911]

I have never had Queen palms in my yard but I do have other palms that have flowers and seeds. Why do you remove the seed pods? I let them grow so the bees will find the flowers and the birds will eat the fruit/seeds. Let nature take its course and you will be rewarded. In time, the expended seed pod clusters will fall off themselves.

[OpusX1]

Originally Posted by batman911

I have never had Queen palms in my yard but I do have other palms that have flowers and seeds. Why do you remove the seed pods? I let them grow so the bees will find the flowers and the birds will eat the fruit/seeds. Let nature take its course and you will be rewarded. In time, the expended seed pod clusters will fall off themselves.

We have two queens one gets 1-3 pods a year the other none. Queen fruit is very messy. It will stain your driveway and sidewalk, and if the birds eat them they will stain everything else so we cut them off.

[rubicon]

Those pods and their fruit do draw critters. I cut them out on first sight

[villages07]

From what I've read and heard from others, it's best to cut the pods off as soon as possible. They take nutrients from the rest of the tree. Yes, the pods are large and heavy ... can only imagine how much "growing" 4 at a time might detract from the health of the rest of the tree.

From what I've read here and discussions with others, it sounds like multiple pods is not that uncommon.

Thanks, all, for your comments.

[batman911]

Letting the pods grow will not harm the tree. No one trims the pods from the trees that grow in the wild and they do just fine. There must be food sources if you want to keep wild life in the area.

When I bought my first home, I would spray chemicals on the lawn to kill the army worms that eat grass roots and kill the grass. I did not like having poison on the grass around the house so I reduced the frequency of treatment until I did not spray at all. By not using the chemicals, the birds started hanging out in my yard and kept the army worms and other pest under control. Let nature work its magic.

[johnfarr]

I remove them because they make a mess and attract squirrels and possibly fruit/roof rats.

[Vinny]

I would think it best to remove them after watching Invasion of the Body Snatchers. Don't want any pod to take over my body.

[batman911]

Maybe they will bloom into IPods if you leave them on the tree :-).

[tomkat]

When you remove the seed pods do you also remove the husk? I was having some landscape work done several weeks ago and I asked the landscaper to cut the seed pods from my palms...he cut away the pods but left the husks...I went out before he finished and he was gone when I returned - if not I would have asked him about it.

Does it make a difference if you remove the seed pods and not the husk?

[The Great Fumar]

When I see pods developing , I cut them down right away, I have two little people living next door and I'm not sure they didn't come from my Queen palms..........

living in fear fumar...

[Chi-Town]

Queen palm seed pods are getting to be a moot point around my house. Have lost four in the last year and a half. Two just snapped and fell over. I have now noticed that the developer doesn't plant them. I visited the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Sumter County Extension office off 466 with a Queen sample, and they said that they are sensitive to the cold and that they should not even be planted around here. BTW, I have three Canary palms that are as healthy as can be.