Areca palm tree: care

These are the main characteristics of the Areca palmscientific name Dypsis lutescenswhich is a tropical plant:

• It originates from the island of Madagascar.
• It is a medium-sized palm tree, which usually maintains its height between 1.5 and 3 meters, although it can reach up to twice this last value in very optimal conditions in its natural habitat.
• Its leaves are quite long, up to more than 2 meters, and are divided into a large number of leaflets.
• It gets its name from the bamboo palm tree because of its ringed trunks, reminiscent of those of bamboo.
• When it blooms, it gives rise to small white flowers with an intense and very pleasant aroma.
• Its fruits, on the other hand, are yellow, but they turn dark as they mature.

To summarize, this is a basic care guide for the areca palm tree:

• Light: the Areca can tolerate being located in direct light, but it appreciates semi-shade more.
• Climate: tropical or subtropical climate.
• Substrate or soil: the most important thing is that it has good drainage.
• Watering: every 2 or 3 days in the warm months, and every 10-15 days in the cold months.

As we indicated above, the Dypsis lutescens it can withstand locations where it receives direct incidence of sunlight, but it will develop better in bright environments where the intense sun does not hit it directly. Because of this, it is widely used as houseplant, as it will thrive more than adequately in any room with good lighting. If you expose it directly to very intense solar influxes, it is possible that its leaves burn and spoil.

Regarding temperature, this palm tree is a plant from tropical environments, so the ideal is to keep it in a temperature range above 15 ºC. In fact, its optimum temperature is between 18ºC and 25ºC.

It also requires a slightly high ambient humidity, since it transpires a large amount of water through its leaves. If you notice that the tips of its leaves turn brown, it is that the Areca needs more humidity, so you should spray some water on its leaves a couple of times a day in the warm months.

As a tropical plant that it is, the Areca needs a few regular and abundant watering. Above we indicated that the adequate watering is approximately every 2 or 3 days in the spring and summer months but, as always, this is only a guide value.

The important thing in this case is to check that the substrate is always kept slightly moist, but never waterlogged. The plant needs to have water at its disposal regularly, but an excess of watering can end up drowning it. Similarly, in winter it is important to markedly reduce watering.

Due to its ability to purify the air, this plant needs fertilizer more than others, especially if you want it to stay green and vital. In the warm months of spring and summer, we recommend fertilizing the Areca once a month with fertilizer for tropical plants.

You can also rely on ecological organic fertilizers from the many that you can make at home. In this other article we explain how to make homemade organic fertilizer for plants.

If the tips of Areca leaves turn brown It can be due mainly to two problems: either the environment is very dry or you have watered it excessively. The first case is remedied by regularly spraying water on its leaves, while, in the second case, it will be necessary to pay attention that the substrate does not become waterlogged.

Yes the leaves begin to turn yellow, it is likely that it is some pest, probably installed on the underside of its leaves. Identify what type of pest it is and combat it appropriately. In these other articles we talk about How to make natural insecticides for plants and homemade fungicides.

Below you can see a video guide on the care of the Areca palm tree. Also, if you want to discover more plants of this type, you can consult this guide on 25 tall indoor plants.

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