Question
Hi nick I have about 80 or so mature Bangalow palms I noticed the other day that on one of them the trunk just below the crown has flopped over to one side the leaves look healthy but they are now all hanging to one side I have never seen this before could you please help, also I have several dwarf date palms all over 25 yrs old and one of them the crown has split into three desperate crowns and the leaves are deformed and stunted I think it may be butt rot but I am not sure how to treat it we are in the middle of a so far ten year drought I have water tanks so keep my palms well watered two good soaks a week thanks in advance Pat Calder

Answer
The crown has collapsed from a stress crack that has been expanding along the crown line, this is a pretty common phenononom and it needed to be caught while the crack was developing and corrected with a brace at that point; I am afraid that if the crown has collapsed, there isn't really anything you can do now. Contact a local expert on Palm who might have a look at it for you,but I don't think there is anything that can be done now. The Date Palms often develop secondary growth, this is common, but the stunted growth isn't good, try spraying the crowns with a chelated Palm nutritional spray, it may be nutrient deficiency, and the roots are not getting the job done from below fast enough. Nick