Question
I have a few king palms inside of my backyard, i live in ventura county in california. they have a crack up their trunk around 4-5 feet, maybe a 1/2 " at the widest. the trees appear to be doing fine solid root base. i haven't been watering them as much this winter, letting nature do it, was trying to stunt their growth, the fronds are too large 7-8 feet long, i have edison electric wires to worry about if they get too tall. Danny

Answer
Hi Danny, that's a phenomenon that is really quite common with a lot of Palms, as long as it isn't effecting the health of the Palm I wouldn't be too concerned; keep an eye on it and if it widens then you may have to consult a local expert to come out and brace it, otherwise it isn't anything to be real concerned about. As far as stunting the growth, there really isn't anything you can do, if you deprive it of irrigation and fertilizer, it will effect its overall health and you could lose it. Nick