Fishtail Palm
Caryota mitis
Palms Difficulty: Moderate
📖 About this plant
The Fishtail Palm is named for its distinctive bipinnate leaves with jagged leaflets that resemble fishtails. This clumping palm is unusual in that each stem is monocarpic — it flowers once at the top and then dies, though new stems continue to grow from the base.
🧑🌾 Care requirements
☀️
Light
Bright indirect to full sun (4-8 hrs)
💧
Water
Every 2-3 days
💨
Humidity
High (50-70%)
🌡️
Temperature
20-32°C
🪴
Soil
Rich, well-draining loamy soil with organic matter; consistently moist; pH 5.5-7.0
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Fertilizer
Balanced palm fertilizer quarterly; supplement with iron to prevent chlorosis
📋 Plant facts
- 🌍 Origin
- Southeast Asia (India, Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia)
- 📏 Max height
- 600-900 cm
- 📐 Spread
- 180-300 cm
- 🕰️ Bloom time
- Spring - Summer
- 🎨 Bloom color
- Purple, Green
- 🍃 Foliage color
- Dark Green
- ⏳ Lifespan
- Perennial
- 📈 Growth rate
- Moderate
- ☠️ Toxicity
- Fruit contains calcium oxalate crystals — highly irritating to skin and toxic if ingested
- 🌱 Propagation
- Seed germination; division of clumping suckers; note: monocarpic — individual stems die after flowering
🛡️ Health & Safety
⚠️ Not pet safe
☠️ Toxic
Fruit contains calcium oxalate crystals — highly irritating to skin and toxic if ingested
Common issues
- Scale insects, Spider mites, Bud rot, Mite webbing on leaflets
💡 Care tips
- Unusual ragged leaf edges resemble fish tails,Can grow very tall indoors reaching 15 feet or more,Fast grower that needs regular feeding in warm months,All parts are toxic if ingested so keep away from pets
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One click — added instantly. Watering every 3 days, fertilizing every 30 days.
