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Gardeners Love The Parlor Palm Plant
The parlor palm plant is what many consider an attractive houseplant. It also gets appreciation for not being demanding. It displays vivid colors and distinctive leaves while tolerating drought and low-light areas. Thriving in varied conditions, it’s an excellent choice for amateur gardeners. Even busy individuals can make it grow since it can withstand some neglect. Plus, it can develop into a fine aesthetic plant with adequate attention and care. Thus, since Queen Victoria’s reign, it is still one of the most beloved indoor plants.
This post explores its nature which includes its care requirements and other attributes. So, if you wish to put some elegance in your home, please keep reading for some tips to take care of it.
Describing The Parlor Palm Plant
Its scientific name is Neanthe Bella. Native to semitropic and tropical rainforests, it’s common in Central America and Mexico. Also called Chamaedorea Elegans in Spanish, it’s the plant associated with elegance. It’s been ennobling parlors or reception areas throughout places during its peak popularity. The appreciation for it goes back to the 1830s to 1900s or the Victorian era. It can grow 4 to 8 feet in pots indoors and has a single trunk with green and arching pinnate foliage. In springtime, it blooms tiny yellow blossoms that go higher than its fronds. So, being decorative, it’s clear why its look makes it a prized plant.
It’s common to see these in the low-light or shaded areas of living rooms, office areas, and bedrooms of houses. Folks put them on small tables and countertops, corners, and windows. Their design brings hues, consistency, and vitality into rooms. In Feng Shui, they also bring good fortune and the wood element inside a home. Hence, small and large spaces will enjoy this plant around.
Taking Care Of The Parlor Palm Plant
Caring for the Chamaedorea Elegans isn’t challenging, as claimed by many. It’s still a plant that needs sunlight, water, fertilizer, and the right temperature. But it’s that which doesn’t demand a lot from people and the environment. As a mature plant, it can manage to grow well even when neglected. Its attributes make it adaptable to seasonal changes too. Hence, many find it very appealing to grow indoors.
Below are a few valuable tips to make the Neanthe Bella flourish and turn out great.
Watering The Tree Right
Keep the soil dry between watering and try to hydrate it weekly or every other week. In low-light conditions, it’s unlikely to need a lot of water. If it isn’t too warm, it won’t become dried out. During wintertime, hydrate it less or every two weeks. This tree is at risk of overwatering too. Feeding the parlor palm plant too much water will cause its leaves to turn droopy, yellow or brown, and limp. When the soil is still moist, don’t put water on it. You’re likely going to moisten it more during the summer months. So it doesn’t demand plenty of attention when it comes to watering it.
Giving The Parlor Palm Sunlight
Even if it can manage to thrive in low-light conditions, it doesn’t mean that it will survive without light. The ideal environment for the Neanthe Bella has medium to bright sunlight. Yet it can only do so well with dappled or indirect light. Too much exposure can cause its fronds to get burnt. Its dark foliage will turn paler or yellow with prolonged sun exposure. Thus put it where in areas that are like near curtained windows. There’s light but not too much of it.
Even if it shouldn’t have direct and lengthy sun exposure, it must have at least 5 hours of sunlight daily. Giving artificial light is already helpful too. When the sun doesn’t shine like it used to, grow lights can serve as valuable light sources. It means that this plant can even manage to survive during wintertime. Hence, it’s why folks also consider it a flexible plant.
Temperature For The Chamaedorea Elegans
The parlor palm plant cannot take frost. Moving it outside and into shaded spots during the summer is beneficial. Yet leaving it outdoors when it’s cold can prove to be fatal for it. It’s hardy in zones 10 to 12 and can thrive in warm conditions as a tropical tree. The ideal temperature to support it is around 18 to 26 Celcius or 65 to 80 Fahrenheit. Transfer it from areas near doors, windows, and vents when it gets chilly.
Since it can do well when it’s a bit warm, put it in sunny yet shaded locations during summer. Gardeners taking care of it often place it in areas facing south or east. Also, if possible, try to keep this plant away from windy areas. It’s not only because the cold may end up damaging it. Strong winds may hurt its fronds. Hence, temperature and air quality are manageable for this tree.
Propagating and Fertilizing The Parlor Palm Plant
It can live for decades, but it’s one of those trees that grow from seed. Germination can occur after about three months of tending. Making it reach its full height or mature requires years of care. But at least you only need seeds moist in a well-draining potting mix while providing sunshine to grow it. To begin growing it, using peat and perlite is ideal for it. Hence, it’s not hard to start planting it.
Like other trees, a Neanthe Bella parlor palm in a pot needs fertilization too. During the growing months, it needs balanced and slow-release fertilizer. Giving this monthly will do. Many gardeners recommend providing liquid plant food at half-strength. But, like feeding other trees during winter, put less plant food during the cold days. The metabolism of plants becomes slow during those times. It means that a tree can’t process nutrients a lot when it’s resting. So don’t overdo mixing fertilizer in the soil of this plant. Remember that it’s also responsive to foliar and soil feeding.
Dealing With Pests
The parlor palm plant is also susceptible to pest infestation. Insects like aphids, spider mites, leaf scales, mealy bugs, gnats, and flies may feed on it. They likely invade to get moisture and nutrients from the tree. Yet the Neanthe Bella doesn’t have to turn yellow and wither with them around. Ways to remove them are available. Manual extraction by wiping or picking can help deal with them. Applying water diluted with soap or alcohol also gets them killed. So be watchful of these creatures and remove them as soon as possible.
To know if they’re there, a Chamaedorea Elegans often gives clues. Fronds discolor and have spots on them during an infestation. Upon close inspection, you can tell that some needle-like structures are pests. They can appear as waxy materials deposited on shoot tips too. Thus, even if parlor palm trees don’t demand constant attention, it pays to check them.
Benefits Of The Parlor Palm Plant
Because of its sophisticated style, people use the Neanthe Bella for home design. Yet it’s a plant that gives more than colors, textures and shapes to a home. Like other trees, it also purifies the air and does well at it. It clears the air of toxic chemical compounds such as benzene and trichloroethylene. Exposure to these gases causes headaches, drowsiness, and eye plus skin irritations. It also takes in carbon dioxide while giving off oxygen to the atmosphere. When around it, the air turns breathable and fresher. So it’s a plant that helps with relaxation. Some people put it in their bedrooms to achieve quality sleep.
It is dependable in releasing vapor due to its transpiration rate. Rooms become more humid, making it difficult for pathogens and aerosols to travel. High humidity reduces many problems. Examples are skin dryness and irritation of the eyes, nose, sinuses, and throat. Thus, with its presence, rooms turn cozy and ideal for resting. It’s excellent to have it when you have pets because it isn’t toxic to them.
In Closing
Selecting a parlor palm plant is wise if you’re after an attractive and manageable plant. It has long and curved green fronds that connect to a slender trunk. Given its height and slow growth rate, it fits well in a pot and can decorate different rooms in a house. Managing it is convenient since it doesn’t always need water and fertilizer. Putting it in areas with indirect sunlight is enough too. Still, it sanitizes the air you breathe. So you could try this if you wish to have an easy tree that cleans and adds elegance to a home.
We hope you found our entry about this plant valuable to your gardening knowledge. Are you interested in adding the Chamaedorea Elegans to your home? Thanks for taking some time to read this, and good luck adding and tending to your indoor plants!
I like the valuable information you provide in your articles.
Thank you!