Saw Palmetto (Serenoa repens) 4 seeds

Saw Palmetto - Serenoa repens - 4 seeds

A small palm with dark, reddish-black berry-like fruits growing on the Atlantic coast of North America. Reaching a height of 4 m. It has wide fan-shaped leaves and its dark red fruits are protected by a thick scale on a small stem attached to the trunk. It flowers from December to March and produces purple-red fruits from April to October.

The berries contain oil with diverse fatty acids and phytosterols. The fruits are harvested and used in pharmacy.

In our regions, it is grown as both an outdoor and indoor plant. It is frost-resistant.

How to grow Serenoa

• Requires fully sunny locations and generous watering during the season. Southern, fully sunny exposure is suitable. It tolerates cold down to -14°C. For winter, create a winter cover for palms grown in the garden. Indoor overwintering should be at temperatures of 2 to 10°C, in bright or even dark places with very limited watering.

• Sowing is done year-round. First soak the seeds for at least 3 days in warm water. Change the water daily. Then plant the seeds in a substrate composed of perlite and peat in a 1:1 ratio. Sow shallowly. Seeds germinate in 2-3 months in constantly moist substrate. The substrate should have higher than room temperature, approximately 26 degrees Celsius. Transplant approximately 10 cm tall plants into their own containers.

• The ideal base for most palms is a mixture of compost soil or peat with a moderate proportion of clay component and yellow, dug sand. It can be purchased directly as palm substrate. Good drainage at the bottom of the container is essential, of course.

• Regular fertilization of palms from March to September every 2 to 3 weeks is essential. It is better to fertilize more frequently in lower concentrations than occasionally with strong fertilizer concentration. Before applying fertilizer, the plant must be watered. Do not apply fertilizer to the palm heart, do not fertilize leaves, do not fertilize sick plants, do not fertilize small seedlings, do not fertilize freshly transplanted plants for several months.

  During the growing season, fertilize every 3 weeks. It is suitable to use Humvit fertilizer, which does not pose a risk of plant overdose. It can be alternated in spring with Fytovit. In summer with Hahrmavit. Always apply only one-third of the given fertilizer as indicated in the instructions.

• Animal pests are biting and sucking insects and their larvae sucking sap from leaves and draining energy, which weakens the organism and leads to plant death. Scale insects and mealybugs can be recognized by brown hard shells on the plant. The plant becomes stunted, leaves fall off and a sticky coating appears. The cause is always dry air. Protection is spraying with Savel. Shells can also be scraped off and affected areas treated with an alcohol-soaked swab.

  Mealybugs, mites and thrips create white cotton-like nests and slimy excretions on the underside of leaves. The cause is again dry air. Coat white tufts and individual specimens with oil, humidify the air, or use special sprays, e.g., Biool (oil emulsion) or Mospilan 20 SP or Sumithion super in combination with Applaud WP, Actellic 50 EC, Talstar 10 EC, at least 5 sprays (every 2 days).

  White insects that fly up at the slightest disturbance, sticky and deformed leaves, spots on leaves. These are all signs of whitefly infestation. Whiteflies love humid heat, so they appear most often in greenhouses. Protection is to provide plants with cooler and more ventilated environment and use yellow sticky traps or sprays: Applaud 25 WP in combination with Sumithion super, Mospilan 20 SP.

  Plants are also attacked by aphids. Suitable protection includes spraying with soapy solutions or spraying with Pirimor 25 WG or Fast K180, Aztec 140 EW, Agrion delta.

  Spider mites create webs on the upper or lower side of leaves. Leaves turn yellow and later dry out. It is suitable to use insecticides in spray form (Vertimec 2x 5ml - works almost immediately) Fast K 180, Apollo 50 SC, Omite 57 EW.

  Fungus gnats are black flies whose larvae are translucent with black heads, they love humus and peat and usually attack and destroy the roots of young plants. Protection must come immediately, otherwise there is no chance of rescue. Hang yellow sticky traps (Stopset traps), use insecticides in spray form (Decis), at least 5 sprays (every 2 days).

  Before winter storage, it is advisable to carry out preventive spraying against fungal diseases (Fundazol 50 WP, Novozir MN, Polyram WG, Rovral 50 WP, Kuprikol 50). Most fungal diseases manifest when the plant is too weakened by unfavorable growing conditions.

  Among the most common palm diseases is sooty mold. It manifests as a sticky blackish surface on leaves. Protection is to remove contaminated leaves, spray with Novozir MN.

  Gray mold creates a gray-white coating on plants. The best protection is to cut off affected parts of plants, ventilate the room where you grow the plant and use protective products such as Novozir MN, Ronilan, Dithane.

  Rust manifests as reddish-brown spots on leaves, shoots may soften. Affected leaves need to be destroyed and when watering, they must not be sprayed, otherwise rust spores spread further throughout the plant. We carry out protection by spraying with Baycor 25 WP, Polyram WG.

Photo sources:
Author: Geoff Gallice from Gainesville, FL, USA – Saw palmetto, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=22440540
Author: Ted Bodner, Southern Weed Science Society, United States – This image is Image Number 1120620 at Forestry Images, a source for forest health, natural resources and silviculture images operated by The Bugwood Network at the University of Georgia and the USDA Forest Service., CC BY 3.0 us, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6981549
Author: Bob Peterson from North Palm Beach, Florida, Planet Earth! – Saw palmetto & Flower ScarabUploaded by Jacopo Werther, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=24649843
By Ted Bodner, Southern Weed Science Society, United States - This image is Image Number 1120619 at Forestry Images, a source for forest health, natural resources and silviculture images operated by The Bugwood Network at the University of Georgia and the USDA Forest Service., CC BY 3.0 us, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6981484
By Miguel Vieira from Walnut Creek, CA, USA - Saw palmetto (Serenoa repens) and forest in Manatee Springs State Park, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=18475331