Palm trees as houseplants exude a special atmosphere. You immediately feel like you're on vacation, surrounded by the beautiful, green leaves. In addition, most specimens are quite easy to care for and will therefore provide many years of enjoyment even for beginners. What about the popular Howea forsteriana? We explain how to care for the Kentia palm in our article. Find out everything you need to know about location, irrigation, fertilizer and more.
Easy-care houseplants for every room
You have probably seen this type of palm tree many times and everywhere. No wonder, because it is so easy to care for that it is not only welcome in your own home, but also often decorates offices.
Caring for Kentia Palm – The right location indoors and outdoors
The brightness
The Kentia palm is particularly special when it comes to the locationquite undemanding. This is why it finds its way so quickly into office spaces, where there is often more artificial light than natural light. The only important thing is that it is really bright or at least partially shaded. However, you should definitely avoid direct sunlight at midday, as this is a type of palm tree that cannot tolerate it. At other times of the day, the hours of sunshine should not exceed 3.
How can you be sure that the brightness is really enough? Watch the leaves! If new ones appear less and less over time, it may be too dark for her and you should find a window seat for her. The green of the leaves becomes lighter and brighter and one thing or another emergesyellow leaf, it needs a slightly darker place.
What temperatures does the plant like?
Since this is a heat-loving specimen, the optimal temperatures are between 18 and 20 degrees, and at least 15 degrees in winter. However, do not place the palm tree near a heater or near the air conditioning, as it will not only quickly become too warm, but also too dry.
Caring for Kentia Palm – Can you go out in summer?
In summer you canbeautiful palm plantPamper yourself by finding her a place outside. However, this must be protected from wind and sun. Then you can watch how lush and joyful the plant grows.
How to water the palm trees
The palm plant needs it moist, but please without waterlogging. This basically means that you should check the top layer of soil. If it has dried, watering is required, which usually means once every 5 days in summer and once every 10 days in winter.
The humidity
Also pay attention to the right humidity when caring for a Kentia palm. It shouldn't be too dry if possible. Therefore, the plant appreciates frequent spraying of the leaves if your heating or air conditioning dries out the air significantly, which can also improve the indoor climate. Or youset up a humidifier. In all other cases, normal humidity should be sufficient.
If you're considering spraying, keep this in mind: Rainwater is better because it doesn't leave chalky spots on the leaves. Regular spraying also prevents pests and cleans dust that otherwise collects on the leaves over time.
Caring for Kentia palm – What you need to consider when fertilizing
The best way to care for the Kentia palm is to provide it with sufficient nutrients. In her case that means liquid fertilizer every week from April to September. It is a plant that grows relatively slowly and therefore does not need a high dosage of fertilizer. This means you can use about half of the specified amount or ask the dealer beforehand.
If you forget to fertilize, that's absolutely no problem. The palm tree can survive even long phases without fertilizer without any problems, so it will not die straight away. This just slows down growth. But also keep in mind that the weakened plant will then become more susceptible to diseases and pest infestation.
Kentia palm care – just cut off brown leaves?
No matter how carefully you care for the Kentia palm, it still happens from time to time that the leaves have brown tips or other signs of damagebrown. First of all, you should of course check whether the plant is actually doing well in its location and change it if necessary. Otherwise, you are welcome to remove the unsightly leaves if you find them annoying. It is important that you do not injure the trunk but only remove the individual leaf.
A notice:Have you noticed brownish fibers on the undersides of the leaves? Don't worry, this is not a pest infestation, but rather a natural appearance of this type of palm tree. Dark accumulations also occur often and are not a big deal. Nevertheless, you should check your houseplant regularly for infestation or disease so that you can take action in good time.
Toxic to humans and animals, or not?
Is the Kentia palm poisonous? No, that's not her. So if you have noticed that your cat is gnawing on the leaves, you don't need to worry - at least not about the animal. The only problem here is the gnawed leaves, which turn brown and unsightly after the leaf wounds.
