kentia palm

Question

I’ve had my kentia palm(indoors) for over a year and its been doing well but now has fuzzy brown stuff on the underside of the leaves and tips of fronds are browning. I had been fertilizing it every few months with Maxsea but after seeing the brown stuff I realized it was time to fertilize and accidentally used all purpose miracle grow on it! Any idea whats happening with brown stuff and how to treat? Also, will the accidental use of all purp. miracle grow going to have negative effect? How do I care for my kentia in general?

Answer 1

This appears to be two separate issues. It does sound like it has been a little over-fertilized, as they don’t need a whole lot. If anything I would do half strength. I don’t believe the MiracleGro to be an issue, as long as you don’t feed full strength. Make sure the pot has good drainage and try to flush water through the soil to get some of the nutrients out.\

Also, it is likely that there is a fungal infection. My personal remedy is as follows: First, you will want to prime the soil with dolomitic lime, then spread wettable sulfur to Kill off any infection in the soil. I Also like to spray the plant itself. Mix a few drops of one or more of these ingredients into warm water with a spoonful of coconut oil: Rosemary oil, lavender oil, neem oil, garlic oil, cinnamon extract/oil and for really bad cases, also add clove oil.

Here is an article on their general care: https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/houseplants/kentia-palm/howea-forsteriana-kentia-palm.htm