Sago Palm Care

Sago palms are beautiful plants native to Southern Japan. Interestingly, they are not true palms, but belong to a different group of plants called cycads. You can read about care tips and some other information about sago palms in this article.

It is easy to care for these palms. All you have to do is work on a few little things.

Water

The watering routine of sago palms is more like that of a cactus. You should allow the soil to dry completely before watering it again. Depending upon the temperature and the amount of sunlight it receives, you might need to water it just once in a week or two.

Soil

The sago palm does not like the water to sit around it. So you must use a quickly draining soil with a lot of sand in it.

Sunlight

Although sago palms prefer bright sunlight but you can also get then used to moderate light levels or partial shade. They can even be kept indoors, but place them very near to the window where they can get a lot of sunlight.

Pruning

Cut off lower leaves to encourage new growth.

Propagation is the process of growing new plants using various methods. Sago palms can be propagated using two techniques.

1) Seed germination

2) Offset removal

Seed germination

Start the propagation process by collecting seeds from the cone of a female sago palm. Remove the soft coating of these seeds. Placing them in lukewarm water for a day makes it easy to remove the pulp. Wash thoroughly to remove every single particle of the pulp. You can store these seeds for a while to allow the embryo to be prepared for the germination. Again, soak them in warm water for a couple of days before sowing them. Now you can plant these seeds into the potting mix you have already prepared. Sow the seeds horizontally so that half of the seed is above the soil. Keep the soil moist almost all the time and provide humid conditions. Cover the pot with a transparent plastic bag to retain moisture.

Offset removal

Removing offsets or pups from the mother plant and starting them as new plants is another way of propagating the sago palms. Allow these pups to grow 10 to 15 inches in diameter. Now cut them off from the base without damaging or even disturbing the mother plant. Plant them in potting mix in small pots. Water the soil around them. Do not over-water the soil and avoid watering the pup itself. Keep it in shade. They will establish themselves within six to twelve months.

Warning: Don't forget to wear your gardening gloves while working with this plant because most parts of the sago palms are toxic.