One sabal palm by the pool tested positive for lethal bronzing, but the two beside it look fine. Do they have to go too?

Not automatically. UF/IFAS advises testing the healthy-looking palms nearby, because a palm can test positive before it shows symptoms, and such a palm should still come out. Palms that test clean can start preventive antibiotic injections every three to four months for at least two years. The infected palm itself should be removed right away.

A tan shelf-shaped growth appeared at the base of our queen palm. Can it be treated?

UF/IFAS describes that as the conk of Ganoderma butt rot, and says there are no chemical or cultural controls that cure it. The palm should be removed as soon as possible, with as much of the stump and roots as can be taken out, or the stump ground. The fungus stays in the soil, so don't put another palm in that spot without precautions.

The oldest fronds on our palms have yellow-orange spots and frizzled tips. Should we cut them off?

Probably not. Those are typical signs of potassium deficiency, which UF/IFAS calls very common in sandy, leached soils. Its research found that regularly removing those discolored older fronds speeds the palm's decline and can kill it early. The treatment is a slow-release potassium and magnesium fertilizer, and recovery can take one to two years or longer.

Palm Tree Disease in Palm Coast, FL

Injection cost: HomeGuide's national price for a tree injection against insects or disease is $75 to $250 per tree.
Lethal bronzing timeline: UF/IFAS puts symptoms about four to five months after infection, then two to three months more until the spear leaf collapses.
Protecting neighbors: healthy palms near an infected one get an antibiotic injection every three to four months for at least two years, per UF/IFAS.
Ganoderma sign: a hard, shelf-like conk on the lower 4 to 5 feet of the trunk; UF/IFAS lists no cure.

Palm Coast Tree Service passes requests from owners of sick palms to a palm care company. Ask it to separate disease from a nutrient problem before anything is cut. Describe what you see: where the brown fronds are, whether fruit is dropping early, and whether anything is growing on the trunk.

Palm Tree Disease and Look-Alikes, Symptom by Symptom

Base of a palm trunk with a hard tan shelf-shaped fungal conk growing about a foot above the soil, mulch and lawn around it

Ganoderma Conks at the Base of the Trunk

Ganoderma butt rot is a fungus that breaks down the lower 4 to 5 feet of the trunk from the inside. UF/IFAS says every palm is a host, the wood stays hard so the rot isn't obvious, and the only sure sign before the palm dies is the conk: a hard shelf on the lower trunk. Many infected palms never grow one before they die. The fungus spreads by spores released from the conks.

No cultural or chemical control is known to prevent or cure it
Remove the palm soon after conks appear, with the stump and roots or a stump grind
No new palm in the same spot without special precautions

Sabal palm in a yard with its lower fronds turned reddish-bronze and the newer upper fronds still green, a screened pool cage behind

Lethal Bronzing in Sabal and Other Palms

Lethal bronzing is caused by a phytoplasma, a tiny bacterium carried by sap-feeding insects, and was first found in Florida in 2006. UF/IFAS has isolated it from the cabbage (sabal) palm and has found it in 21 palm species across 36 Florida counties. The first sign on a fruiting palm is usually fruit dropping early, then the oldest fronds discolor and the browning moves upward until the spear leaf collapses. Pruning tools don't spread it.

Infection to symptoms: about four to five months
Symptoms to spear-leaf collapse: about two to three months, varying a lot
A palm with symptoms that tests positive is lost and should be removed at once

Close view of an old palm frond with translucent yellow-orange spots and dry, curled brown leaflet tips, green fronds above it

Potassium Deficiency, the Common Look-Alike

Not every browning palm is diseased. Potassium deficiency always shows first on the oldest fronds: yellow-orange spotting that looks translucent against the light, and dead, frizzled or curled leaflet tips. UF/IFAS calls it very common on palms in highly leached sandy soils. Cutting those fronds off makes it worse: UF/IFAS found that regular removal of the discolored old fronds speeds the decline. A badly deficient palm keeps only a few stunted fronds, the trunk tapers, and death often follows.

Fix: slow-release potassium plus magnesium, then a palm maintenance fertilizer
Recovery: one to two years or longer, as the whole canopy is replaced

Gloved hand cutting a dead brown frond off a sabal palm with a curved pruning saw, green fronds left on the crown above

Why Palm Coast homeowners, HOAs and property managers call Palm Coast Tree Service

Each request goes to just one tree company
Free to use; you pay only for work you sign off on
Ask for an estimate that lists cleanup and hauling
Ask to see liability and workers' comp proof

Getting a Sick Palm Diagnosed Before Anything Is Cut

Lethal bronzing and Ganoderma both end in removal, while potassium deficiency is treated with fertilizer and patience, so the diagnosis decides the bill. Ganoderma can also be confirmed from the stained wood once the palm is cut down.

Ask what the diagnosis rests on
A lab test, a conk on the trunk, or fronds that fit a nutrient pattern.
Ask about the trim
A sick palm still gets dead fronds only (palm trimming rules).

For what taking a palm down typically costs, see palm tree removal.