Question
QUESTION: Hello.  

You've probably answered this question several times, but it's difficult for me to track down where.  

I live in Southern California, three miles from the coast.  I have several mature palm trees and date palms.  How much water do they require?  My (new) gardener contends minimal water is necessary as the trees's roots are well-established.  My partner disagrees.  Would you please advise.  

Also, the date palms are covered with a white powdery substance. We sprayed the trees with soapy water and 20 minutes later washed the trees with plain water.  The powdery substance seems even more prevalent.  What should we do?

Many thanks.

R

ANSWER: Hi Robin, If they are established, adult Palms, then your Gardner is correct in that they need minimal assistance from you with irrigation;  The white powder on the Date Palms could be powdery mildew, but that is unusual; the only other white substance I know of is "Aulacaspis Scale", but it afflicts Sago Palms, not Date Palms? Without knowing exactly what it is, I can't recommend a treatment, maybe an image sent here may help. Nick

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Closeup of Palm   QUESTION: Nick, here's a closeup of the powdery substance.  Thanks, R

Answer
...as soon as I replied to the other question you sent, I saw this, so disregard the request for a close up LOL...anyway, it looks like either Mealy Bugs or Scale; Purchase a Horticultural Oil, such as "Ultra-Fine" or "Organocide", follow the directions on the label and that should take care of the problem, when you mix it per the label, add half a teaspoon of dish soap to the mixture, this will help the solution adhere to the insects better. There is an outside chance it could be Powdery Mildew, a fungal disease, but from what I could make out, it looks like an insect problem. It may take several applications , for Scale (if it is Scale..) can be pretty tough to eradicate. Let the solution stay on overnight, and the next morning wash off the residual oil along with the dead insects, again , it may well take several applications to bring them under control. Good Luck! Nick