Pruning Burned Sago Palms

Question

I live in southern Alabama. We had an unsually cold, harsh winter. All of the sago palms have brown leaves from top to bottom. How do we deal with this? Should we trim all the fronds off? If so, that leaves no fronds on the base. I need help. Also, are the seeds to a sago palm hard and dark red, like a nut shell? What can you do with them?

Answer 1

I am sorry to hear about your plant. The cold has damaged many plants this year. You will need to remove the yellow and brown fronds this spring, but only those, as they will not come back. Do not remove green parts of fronds. These articles will help you as well:
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/plant-problems/environmental/how-to-tell-if-a-plant-is-dead-and-how-to-recover-an-almost-dead-plant.htm
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/plant-problems/environmental/tips-for-saving-cold-damaged-plants.htm

It is hard to say how well they will grow back. Sago palms do not deal well with lost fronds, but they have been known to recover fine. I would wait a whole season to see if fronds grow back.