Potted Ruffled Fan Palm Care – Growing Ruffled Fan Trees Indoors

Ruffled Fan Tree
ruffled palm
(Image credit: yuriz)

Are you looking to grow a ruffled fan palm in a pot? Ruffled fan palms (Licuala grandis) are an unusual and gorgeous species of palm. Ruffled fan palm is native to the Vanuata Islands, located off the coast of Australia. It is a very slow growing palm which can reach up to 10 feet (3 m.), but usually closer to just 6 feet (2 m.) when grown in a pot. They are grown for their gorgeous pleated, or ruffled, leaves.

Ruffled Fan Palm Care

Growing ruffled fan tree is pretty easy if you follow the basic care advice below:

  • The ruffled fan palm houseplant prefers partial to complete shade. It can tolerate more sun when it is more established but prefers shadier conditions. Too much direct sunlight will turn their leaves brown.
  • This is a fantastic palm to grow in cooler climates since they can tolerate a minimum temperature of about 32 degrees F. (0 C.) when plants are mature enough. 
  • The indoor ruffled fan palm tree has average water needs. Allow the surface of the soil to dry out before watering again. Reduce watering further in the winter when growth has slowed down. 
  • If you keep potted plants outdoors for part of the year, place them in a sheltered location where they are protected from winds that could tear and damage their leaves. 
  • Take special care when around these plants since their leaf edges are quite sharp. In addition, the petioles contain spines. 
  • Fertilize regularly during the growing season. These plants are already fairly slow growing, but fertilizer will help. Use a 15-5-10 slow-release fertilizer two or three times a year. 

Mature plants will produce an inflorescence and later will produce green fruit which turns red when ripe. Each berry contains one seed inside. You can propagate these plants by seed, but they can take up to 12 months to germinate.