Slender arching fronds reaching 5 to 8 feet indoors bring a touch of exotic life to a living room: this is the areca palm (Dypsis lutescens), one of the most appreciated and often-purchased of all house plants. It asks for one thing above all, very good light; give it a bright west-facing window and it stays handsome for years.
| Name | Dypsis lutescens |
|---|---|
| Former name | Chrysalidocarpus lutescens |
| Family | Arecaceae (also called Palmaceae) |
| Type | Palm tree, indoor plant |
| Height | 5 to 8 feet (1.5 to 2.5 m) indoors |
| Exposure | Very well-lit |
| Soil | Soil mix |
| Foliage | Evergreen |
Planting, when to repot it, and treating falling leaves… these are a few of the many questions when one is lucky to own a magnificent areca. Here is all our advice on caring for it!
Get the planting right. Usually, this is the most important step to make sure your areca stays healthy for years.
Areca requires good soil mix that can be amended with ⅓ compost, if you’ve got some.
In order to enhance drainage, pour clay pebbles or small stones into the pot to form a layer at the bottom.
This will help ensure that roots won’t wallow in water, which could be fatal to it.
Generally speaking, areca doesn’t tolerate the cold and can only be planted outdoors in regions where the climate in winter is mild.
Just as might be done in pots, feel free to place a bed of gravel, small stones or clay pebbles at the bottom of the pot to ensure proper drainage.
Atop this layer, you’ll be using a blend of soil mix, garden soil and sand.
Under our climates, areca adapts well to living indoors in our apartments and homes.
It grows best when surrounding temperatures hold around 65 to 72°F (18 to 22°C) and requires very good light, even some direct sunlight.
Behind a window, though, best to avoid too much direct exposure to the sun which might dry the areca up.
Best to place it near a window facing to the West so that it would still have a good deal of light.
If you live in a house that is quite dark, avoid purchasing areca because it won’t cope well with the lack of luminosity.
Anytime during the year, it is important to mist water on the leaves regularly. This recreates its natural environment living conditions which are rather moist.
This is most often the time of the year when areca grow most.
Water regularly while letting the soil mix dry in the surface before watering again.
Watering must be regular but limited, in order to not suffocate the plant’s roots.
You might say that watering every 2 or 3 days is often needed.
More or less every two weeks, you can offer it some liquid fertilizer, taking great care to moisten the soil mix beforehand.
Start reducing the watering because areca water needs begin to decrease.
Only when the soil is dry down to the first inch or so (a couple centimeters), water to moisten the entire soil mix again.
Again, one might contend that watering 2 or 3 times a month should largely suffice.
But this really depends on where your areca is placed: if it is in full sun, its needs will surely be higher.
Finally, this season is also the one to stop adding fertilizer, from mid-autumn all the way to early spring and mid-spring.
This is undoubtedly due to lack of light or excess water.
If the plant continues to produce new leaves, this is part of your areca’s natural cycle. Trees, even evergreen trees, lose their leaves to renew them.
Note that leaves might harbor colonies of spider mites and scale.
This is a root crown disease called pink rot. As with other root rot sicknesses, the best treatment is to let the plant dry out more often.
Most areca troubles show up in the leaves long before the plant is lost. Match what you see to the likely cause below, then act accordingly.
| Symptom | Likely cause | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Leaves are twisted | Lack of light, or too much water | Move it to a more exposed spot and cut back on watering |
| Leaves yellow while new ones keep appearing | Natural renewal of the foliage | Let them dry and drop, or cut them once fully dry |
| Leaves yellow and no new shoots form | Watering or drainage at fault | Review watering, ensure excellent drainage, feed liquid fertilizer every fortnight |
| Stem bases turn pinkish, leaves die off | Pink rot, a fungal root crown disease | Let the plant dry out more often and handle the palm without wounding it |
In nearly every case the cure begins with less water and better drainage.
Areca is a very elegant palm tree that adapts very well to indoor life in an apartment or house.
All in one aesthetic, resilient and very easy to grow, this is one of the most appreciated and often-purchased indoor plants.
Its foliage is quite elegant and brings a touch of exotic life to a living room, dining area, or any other room of the house that is well-lit.
It’s a cousin to the larger Areca palm that produces betel nut spice, the Betel nut palm. Scientific name of Betel is Areca catechu.
In a house, tall Areca fronds tend to fall over. When indoors, they aren’t hardened by outdoor gusts of wind. To keep them from falling over, tie them loosely together with a cute ribbon. You can even use a macramé necklace or strand of wicker!
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