Question
Hi! I have a Sago Palm that has been in our yard for at least 13 years. In the last couple of weeks it has been losing its' fronds (green and healthy) on one side of the palm only.  When I took a closer look, all the growth on that side of the palm just falls away with a touch, leaving the interior of the palm exposed.  Also, there seems to be a white gelatinous substance in that area of the interior.  I thought maybe some sort of a slug at first, but after poking around a little, it doesn't appear to be alive. Also, we are having the scale problems in our area and this palm does have a little, but the others in our yard do not seem to be having this particular symptom. Any ideas?


Answer
Hi Sue
Sorry about your Sago I think I can help.  Your Sago has a bacterial infection probably brought on by the scale that is inhabiting the plant.  The Scale is actually systemic and is very difficult to get rid of.  The limbs are falling off due to a nutrient blockage caused by this bacteria or fungus the same way your arm would fall of if you tied a tight rope around it to restrict the blood flow.

There is a new product on the market that is proving to be very effective on all Cycads and is currently under testing at the University of Florida.

If you go to www.atomicgrow.com ornamentals tab you will see a heavily infested Sago that was cleaned of the Asian Cycad Scale.  The product Atomic Grow is also a systemic product and will go in through the Stomata and cambium layer and clean up all of your problems.  It will also increase the immunity of the plant and give it super health.

I have used it before and it works really well.  

Good Luck

James