Question
I live in central Florida and 5 months ago had a Robellini palm (two stalk) planted in my yard.  It is a mature plant standing 5-6 feet tall getting sun about half the day.  It has been well watered and fed with both tree fertilizer and epson salt on the recommended schedule.  When the palm was first transplanted it appeared to have some yellowish color with small black spots showing on the bottom of each established fron.  The new growth from the top appears OK, but the color is a lighter green instead of dark green as seen on other existing palms in the area.  This lighter color is also apparent on all of the frons.  I have noticed recently that the ends of many of the frons are dead and the yellow/light gold color along with the black spots seem more prevelant especially on one of the two stalks.  Do you have any idea what might be the problem and what I might do to salvage this beautiful plant?  Thank you.

Answer
Hi Lisa..  the robellini palm usually is disease resistant, you may have another problem     Manganese deficiency, in particular, causes new fronds to appear yellow, withered or scorched; the name for this is "frizzletop".  It is a common problem for palms in south Florida and can be controlled by using manganese sulfate.  It frequently occurs in palms growing in soils that are extremely alkaline, so you may also need to adjust the pH of your soil.