Question
QUESTION: I've had a minutare indoor palm for 18 years now.  It's about 4 ft tall.  In the last 2 months I've noticed that it's gone from a lush plant to where even the new shoots become lighter colored then begin to dry out.  There's also some kind of webbing, alomst like a spider's web, that I've notice on the leaves and even on the blossoming shoots.  I don't want to lose thim palm, as it was given to us when my daughter was a newborn.  HELP!!

ANSWER: Hi Cheryl, your palm is being accosted by Spider Mites (hence the webbing...), they thrive in a dry enviorment like indoors in the Winter; you need to spray your Palm down with either an Insecticidal Soap, or a Horticultural Oil, like Ultra-Fine Oil spray. Once you have sprayed either on the Palm, let it work overnight and the next morning take it outside and wash it down with your hose, eliminating the dead Mites and the residulal Soap or Oil. Once they are gone, you need to mist your Palm frequently to deter a future outbreak. Nick

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hi Nick;
Thanks for your speedy reply.  I've trimmed back the plant, but I still have a lot of dried green foliage.  Should I cut off all of that petrified green leaves, and should I spray the soil around the trunk?  Is it advisable to stir or change the soil as well?

Answer
It wouldn't hurt to change out the soil Cheryl, it should be done once a year anyway; just water the soil periodically so the root system doesn't completely dry out, but don't overdo it, misting the leaves is essential though, this will keep the mites away, for they need a dry atmosphere to settle in. Prune of any browned fronds, but if they have even a trace of green left in them, leave them be, for they are still functioning, and a stressed Palm needs all the help it can get. Nick