Grow triangle palm in full sun, in soil that drains, and water it until it is established. Triangle palm is Dypsis decaryi. It is not an indoor areca clump.
Give it full sun, soil that drains, and water until it is established
| Factor | Recommended | Avoid |
|---|---|---|
| Light | Full sun; a little part shade is tolerated | Do not grow it as a dim houseplant |
| Soil | Ground that drains, even if it is poor and dry once the plant is settled | Do not plant in heavy clay that stays wet, or in a lawn swale |
| Water | Regular water the first year, then ease off; it is drought tolerant once established | Do not keep the crown wet, and do not flood the trunk |
| Feed | A palm fertilizer with potassium a few times in the warm months | Do not skip potassium if the older leaflets yellow and die back from the tips |
triangle palm is Dypsis decaryi, a solitary feather palm from dry southern Madagascar. The common name is the three ranks of fronds: the short petioles stack into a triangle at the top of a gray trunk. It is a landscape palm, not a clustering indoor cane. [1] Give it the brightest open ground you have. In shade the crown stretches and the blue-green leaflets look thin. It takes heat and wind better than areca does, and once the roots are in the ground you can water less than you would a hedge of golden cane. [2] Water regularly through the first year so the roots leave the nursery ball. After that, let the soil dry some between soakings. Keep sprinklers off the crown. Overhead water that sits in the bud can rot the growing point. [3] A young plant still needs water in a long dry spell. An old one in draining ground can ride out drought that would collapse an areca hedge. [4] Indoor areca care is on How to Grow Areca Palm.
Can I grow triangle palm indoors?
It is a poor houseplant. It wants full sun and room for a 25- to 35-foot crown. Keep areca palm for the living room.
Does triangle palm need much water?
Water it through the first year. After that it is drought tolerant in ground that drains. Do not keep the crown wet.
Plant it in frost-free ground, at the same depth it sat in the pot
Plant in warm months, when rain can help the first weeks. A freeze kills the bud. In a cold climate, this is not the palm.
- Pick a frost-free, full-sun site that drains. Keep it out of a low wet pocket.
- Dig a hole a little wider than the root ball and no deeper.
- Set the palm so the top of the root ball is level with the soil. Do not bury the trunk.
- Backfill with the soil you dug out, water to settle, and mulch a few inches off the trunk.
- Water through the first months. Brace a tall, top-heavy plant if it rocks. Do not drive nails into the trunk.
When should I plant triangle palm?
Plant in warm months, when rain can help the first weeks. Do not plant into a freeze.
Not an areca palm — it is not a clustering houseplant
Areca palm is the clustering Dypsis with many yellowish canes, sold for rooms and for moist frost-free hedges. Triangle palm is one trunk and a three-ranked crown. If the tag says areca, butterfly, or golden cane, that plant wants the indoor mix and the rainy-season hedge on How to Grow Areca Palm and Planting Areca Palm, not this dry-sun site.
Is triangle palm the same as areca palm?
No. Areca is a clustering cane palm. Triangle palm is a solitary landscape palm with fronds in three ranks.
If the crown sits in shade or the ground stays wet, move it into full sun that drains, and water only until the roots are in the ground.
FAQ
Can I split triangle palm like areca?
No. It does not make a clump of rooted canes. Seed is the usual way to start a new plant, and a moved trunk after it has formed wood is a poor bet.
Why do the older leaflets look ragged?
The long fine leaflets weather in wind and sun. Cut only fully brown fronds. Yellowing from the tips on older leaves is often a potassium shortage, not a cue to flood the trunk.
Related guides
Recommended plants
References
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