How Long Does it Take For Palm Trees to Grow?

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Last Updated on December 22, 2022 by Griselda M.

If you live in the Mediterranean climate, your region is likely suitable for growing palms, but how long does it take for palm trees to grow?

Whether it’s the small Areca type (Areca triandra) that reaches only 15 feet in zones 10 and 11 or the tall, Montgomery Palm (Veitchia montgomeryana) that can reach 100 feet tall in zones 9 to 11, nothing spells beach life like a palm tree.

These trees are largely known for their distinguished foliage swaying in the breeze, their dates, and coconuts.  Most palm trees growing outdoors produces flowers. These flowers grow in clusters under the leaves but they are small and insignificant.

How Long Does It Take To Grow A Palm Tree?

Once you know how long it takes to grow a palm tree, you will look forward to having a healthy growing palm tree in your home.

Each species has its rate of growth.  Let’s look at different species and their growth rate and size.

King Palm

King Palm is a rapid-growing palm!  It thrives in good soil that has lots of moisture and nutrition. King Palm grows at a rate of at least 2 feet per year.  However, it is noted it grows a little bit slower than Queen Palm. The growth rate for this palm can be increased by growing it where it gets a small amount of shade.  The sun will help it to grow faster.

Queen Palm

This palm thrives in USDA zones 9-11 and grows at a rate of 2 feet per year.  It will grow up to 25 feet in approximately 10 years. You can consider this growth to be a high speed of growth.

European Fan Palm 

The Mediterranean Palm or European Fan Palm trees are slow growers.  They grow around 6 inches per year reaching full maturity of 20 feet in height at a very slow pace. They are popular due to their beautiful fronds and bark. The Mediterranean palms are an excellent addition to many residential landscapes.  They do not overpower the landscape’s visual presentation.

Mexican Fan Palm

The Mexican Fan Palm tree is a fast-growing tree than other palm trees.  It is one of Arizona’s common palm trees that grow as high as 70 to 100 feet.  They are taller than most residential yards can handle. Under normal circumstances, the Mexican Fan Palm tree grows as much as 4 feet per year. Because of their rapid growth and drastic heights, this type is popular for public parks and commercial uses.

Foxtail Palms

This fast-growing palm tree grows up to 2 to 3 feet per year under normal conditions.  They reach a height of 30 feet within 10 years. It is a good option for those seeking a rapid-growing palm for shading. This palm tree has a deep root stem feature that helps it withstand drought conditions.

General 4 To 50 Years

Generally looking at different species, palms take up between 4 to 50 years.  Some plants like the Corypha palm (Corypha utan) do not flower for up to 40 or 50 years.  Once they do, they die soon after the flowers mature into fruit.

The coconut palm (Cocos nucifera) thrives in USDA 10b and 11 but is easily killed by frost.  It produces flowers 4 to 6 years after starting its growth.

The Sago palm (Cycas revoluta) does well in USDA 8 to 10, but it is not botanically a palm tree and does not produce flowers.

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What Is The Life Cycle Of Growing Palm Trees?

The palm trees’ growth cycle comprises multiple stages.  Here, we take a closer look at them.

Germination

Germination is the stage your palm tree begins to develop its roots.  Not all palm trees have the same germination process.  There are two processes. The first one is remote growth. During this process, you will find small sprouts from the plant even before the roots start sprouting.

The second process is adjacent sprouting.  Here, the leaf partially emerges right through the seed. The root system follows later with the plant growing from the area where the leaf is already growing.

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Vertical And Calliper Growth

Germination is the most challenging part of your plant’s life cycle.  Once a leaf or a shoot sprouts from the plant, you can expect it to grow tall over the next couple of years.  This growth is also known as Vertical Growth.  During this stage, position the leaves in a way that they go upward. As they grow, the dried and dead leaves will fall out from their thick trunk.

As the vertical growth happens, you can also expect caliper growth to occur too. To keep your plant steady and high, you will require some tissue-widening techniques.  The tree starts to widen with age and the growth of its caliper will never cease.

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Blooming

As the palm tree begins to mature, it will bloom during the warm, summer months.  Palms do bear flowers; however, these flowers are not as stunning as you would see in other trees.

Palm tree flowers are tiny, and you cannot even see them from a short distance in some situations. These flowers grow in clusters and are whitish.

Palm trees do not bear flowers annually; some species may only bloom once in their lifespan. Others produce annual flowers that have the shape of fruits.

Fruition

Palm trees rely on local pollinators for their fruition.  Some of them like bees or bats move the pollen from multiple trees around. This way, your flowers eventually take the shape of the fruit.

Palm fruits tend to thrive in tiny clusters just like their flowers.  You can immediately harvest your fruits after the ripening process. If you don’t, the animals in your local area end up eating them.

Death

When the palm trees reach the end of their growth period, their fronds and the calipers start to die.  Your palms may also die faster if they are under stress.  They may also die from natural disasters.  After their death, you can replace them with a new tree or another palm and start the cycle all over again.

How Long Does it Take For a Palm Tree to Grow Coconuts?

First, we are working on the assumption you have a coconut palm tree! Only coconut palm trees produce coconut palms. Other types of palms can look similar but will disappoint you if your goal was to produce coconuts.

In most of the places where I have worked where people grow these trees, it seems they take about 4-6 years to produce their first little crops. As the trees get bigger, they start to produce bigger crops. The 30-60-year-old trees can produce crops that can be as heavy as 500 pounds.

What Fruit Grows in a Palm Tree?

There are various edible fruits produced by multiple types of palm trees. Well-known examples include dates from date palms and coconuts from coco-nut palms. Betel nuts are grown on a type of Areca palm. Palm kernel and fruit oil come from a palm tree native to parts of Africa and are now grown worldwide. There are many other less commonly known edible palm tree fruits.

How Can I Make My Palm Tree Grow Straight?

This will depend on the palm – some just will not. I work in many countries where coconut palms grow – if they are in an area with little wind, they grow straight up, but in windy areas, they are bent by the wind. You will have to find out what the type of palm is that you are growing, and then work out what the best method is to get it to grow straight.

Some palm trees can be bent straight, by pulling them with ropes and anchoring them in the ground. Others will not enjoy this treatment. The first step – find out what type of palm tree you have. The next step, find a strategy to make it grow straight, if possible.

How Do You Take Care of a Palm Tree Plant?

This will depend on the palm tree! Some palm trees will thrive if you water them every day and others will die. You generally want a palm tree to be planted in sandy, well-draining soil that is rich in organic matter and gets watered once or twice a week. This is not a universal rule, and many will die if you provide them with these conditions. It is important to know what type of palm tree you have and use that knowledge to inform how you care for it.

How Tall Does a Dwarf Coconut Tree Grow?

Dwarf coconut trees are beautiful. I have tried to grow them a few times, but my climate is not conducive. In a few places where I work, such as the Island paradise of Mauritius, dwarf coconut trees have become a bit of a fashion as they are less dangerous than full coconut trees. These trees tend to grow quite slowly and reach about 12-20 feet in height if they are grown in a poor location (next to a tarmac) and hence they are less legally onerous (big coconuts from a non-dwarf tree will kill you when they fall).

Where Do Coconut Trees Grow Best?

Coconut trees are very temperature sensitive. Other than this they are probably the toughest and most useful plants on Earth in terms of tolerating bad conditions! They do not tolerate temperatures below 70°F at all. They are also generally not fond of high altitude – they thrive up to a height of about 1800 feet above sea level as long as the temperatures in this zone do not drop below 70°F. They thrive on tropical land that is flat and alluvial and receives decent rainfall.

What do Palm Trees grow in The Desert?

The quintessential desert palm tree is the date palm – Phoenix dactylifera. These thrive in warm hot desert conditions but require that their roots have access to water. This water can be quite deep below the surface, and, if the young date palms are watered until they have established their root systems, they will survive. Typically young date palms require weekly waterings, and once their root system finds underground water (such as on the banks of a river that passes through a dry area, or in an oasis) they will be largely stable and able to look after themselves.

Palm Trees Growth Conclusion

How fast a palm tree grows must be understood as per the species’ characteristics and we cannot give the same timeline to all palm trees.

However, we have understood the basics of the growth of this tree making it easy to grow.

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