Grow areca palm in bright indirect light, keep the mix moist, and raise the humidity. Areca palm is Dypsis lutescens, also sold as butterfly palm or golden cane. It is not a parlor palm.
Give it bright indirect light, keep the mix moist, and raise the humidity
| Factor | Recommended | Avoid |
|---|---|---|
| Light | Bright indirect light; a little morning sun is fine | Do not stand it against hot afternoon glass, and do not leave it in a dark corner |
| Water | Soak the pot when the top inch of mix is dry, then empty the saucer | Do not leave the pot standing in water, and do not use a calendar that ignores the mix |
| Humidity | About 50 percent or more; a pebble tray or a humidifier | Do not set it in the blast from a heater or an air conditioner |
| Warmth | A warm room, about 65 to 85 F, away from drafts | Do not set it in a cold draft |
areca palm is Dypsis lutescens, a clustering feather palm from Madagascar. Shops sell it for rooms because the yellow-green canes and arching fronds fill a corner, but it wants brighter light and more even moisture than parlor palm, so it thins out in a dim, wet pot. [1] Put it in the brightest spot that does not scorch the leaflets. An east window, or a few feet back from a south or west window, is the usual home. It will live for a while in lower light, but new fronds come slowly, the mix stays wet longer, and spider mites move in when the air is dry. [2] Soak the pot when the top inch of mix feels dry, let the extra run out, then dump the saucer. Keep the mix moist in spring and summer. In winter the plant uses less water, so wait a little longer, but do not let the root ball go bone-dry. Brown leaflet tips are often dry heat, hard tap water, or fertilizer salt, not a cue to leave the pot sitting in a saucer. Filtered water or rainwater helps if your tap water is hard. [3] Aim for humid air around the fronds. A pebble tray, a bathroom with a bright window, or a room humidifier works better than a daily mist. Feed lightly two or three times in spring and summer with a palm or balanced fertilizer, then stop in fall. If the pot spent the summer outside, bring it in before nights stay in the mid-to-low 50s. [4] If you have frost-free ground outdoors, the plant-out is on Planting Areca Palm.
How much light does areca palm need?
Bright indirect light. A little morning sun is fine. Hot afternoon glass scorches the fronds, and a dark corner leaves a thin, wet plant.
How often do I water areca palm?
Water when the top inch of mix is dry, then empty the saucer. Keep the mix moist in growth, a little drier in winter. Do not leave the pot standing in water.
Why are the leaflet tips brown?
Usually dry indoor air, hard tap water, fertilizer salt, or a mix that swings from soggy to dry. Raise the humidity, dump the saucer, and trim only the brown tissue. The brown tips will not turn green again.
Should I bring it in for winter?
If the pot spent the summer outside, bring it in before nights stay in the mid-to-low 50s. Indoors, keep it in the brightest room, raise the humidity, and water a little less.
Plant it in a pot with a hole, and repot only when roots fill the pot
Most people start with a nursery plant. Move it into a pot with a drainage hole so extra water can leave and the mix can still stay evenly moist. The roots are brittle, and this palm likes a snug pot, so do not size up until you have to.
- Choose a pot with a hole, only about two inches wider than the nursery pot.
- Fill it with a palm mix that holds moisture and still drains. Do not use a cachepot with no hole as the only pot.
- Set the root ball at the same depth it sat in the nursery pot, and handle the roots as little as you can.
- Water once to settle the mix, wait about half an hour, then empty the saucer.
- Wait until roots show at the hole, or the plant is unstable, before you size up again. That is often every two or three years.
How often should I repot areca palm?
Only when roots come out of the hole or the plant rocks in the pot. Size up one pot at a time in spring. Crowded roots help keep the indoor plant from racing.
Cut only fully brown fronds, and never the growing point
Each cane grows from a point at the top. If you cut that point, that cane will not put out a new top. Pruning is cleanup of dead fronds, and of canes that have gone fully brown inside.
- Wait until a frond is fully brown. A frond that is only fading at the tips is still feeding the plant.
- Cut the stem close to the cane with clean, sharp shears. Do not yank the base off.
- If only the leaflet tips are brown, trim the brown tissue and leave a thin brown edge. Do not cut into green tissue.
- A cane that is brown or gray with no gold left may be dead. If a thin strip of the surface shows dark wood, cut that cane out at the base. Do not top a green cane to shorten the plant.
Can I prune areca palm to keep it shorter?
You cannot cut the top of a green cane and expect a new crown. Cut only fully brown fronds, and remove a cane only when it is dead. A plant that has outgrown the room is a candidate to split, not to top.
Not a parlor palm — and not a triangle palm or Madagascar palm
Parlor palm is Chamaedorea, a smaller indoor palm that takes lower light. If that is the tag, read How to Grow Parlor Palm. Shop cards also dump bamboo palm on areca because the canes look ringed. The indoor bamboo palm in U.S. shops is usually Chamaedorea seifrizii, not this plant.
triangle palm is the solitary Dypsis with a three-ranked crown. It wants full sun and draining ground, not a dim living room. If that is the tag, read How to Grow Triangle Palm. Madagascar palm on a spiny, swollen stem is Pachypodium, a succulent, not a palm; see How to Grow Madagascar Palm. Majesty is Ravenea; see How to Grow Majesty Palm. Kentia is Howea; see How to Grow Kentia Palm. Pygmy date is Phoenix; see How to Grow Date Palm. Sago is a cycad, and it is toxic if eaten. Do not treat a sago like this plant. Betel nut is a different genus, Areca catechu — do not chew this fruit as if it were that crop.
Is areca palm the same as parlor palm?
No. Parlor palm is a smaller Chamaedorea that takes lower light. Areca is a clustering Dypsis with yellowish canes and finer, arching leaflets.
If the fronds brown from the tips or the mix stays wet, give it brighter indirect light, water when the top inch is dry, empty the saucer, and raise the humidity.
FAQ
Why does a shop card say bamboo palm on areca palm?
The canes are ringed like bamboo. If the Latin is Dypsis lutescens, you have areca palm. Indoor bamboo palm in U.S. shops is usually Chamaedorea seifrizii.
Is areca palm toxic to pets?
It is listed as non-toxic to cats, dogs, and horses. Still keep pets from chewing the fronds, because any plant material can upset a stomach. Sago is a different, toxic plant. Do not eat the heart of the palm — that bud contains cyanide compounds.
Will it flower indoors?
Almost never. Outdoors a mature clump can make small yellow flowers under the fronds in summer, then yellow-orange fruit that darkens.
Can I grow areca palm from a cutting?
A cut frond will not root. Split a rooted cane in spring, or sow a fresh seed. Those steps are on How to Propagate Areca Palm.
Related guides
Recommended plants
References
- [1] NC State Extension -
https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/dypsis-lutescens/ - [2] Clemson Cooperative Extension -
https://hgic.clemson.edu/factsheet/indoor-palms/ - [3] Gardening Know How -
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/houseplants/areca-palm/growing-areca-palm-indoors.htm - [4] University of Maryland Extension -
https://extension.umd.edu/resource/overwintering-tropical-plants
This note is part of Dypsis Guides.
More first-season notes by plant are gathered in How to Grow Guides.
Updated: Reviewed by Bosquelle Editors