WateringTimesWatering plan, $19
Phoenix canariensis, WUCOLS IV

How often to water Canary Island date palm in California

In July in the Central Valley, established Canary Island date palm in loam needs a deep watering about every 20 days: about 55 gallons each time under a 10 foot canopy, about 19 gallons a week. Canary Island date palm is a massive feather palm with a thick, columnar trunk. Its broad crown of arching, dark green fronds carries long spines at the base. It reaches 40 to 60 feet and adapts to most soils, including seaside sites. Established palms need only modest water, and ground that stays soggy invites root and disease trouble.

TreePalm or cycadRated for 6 of 6 zones

How often to water Canary Island date palm, month by month

Your city
Canopy width
10 ft
Your soil

Type your city above and the days between waterings and the gallons appear here, worked out from your city's climate table. Or read the figures by climate zone further down.

Every month, on your water days. The personal plan prints this for Canary Island date palm and the rest of your yard, on the days your water supplier allows.Get the plan for $19

How this is worked out: established roots fill the top 1.5 feet of soil, and you water again when that soil has dried halfway. Loam soil holds about 1.5 inches of water per foot. Water the whole area under the branches, and skip a watering after a good soaking rain.

Which soil do you have?

Dig down a few inches, take a handful of moist soil and squeeze it.

  • Sandy: gritty, falls apart when you open your hand, will not form a ball.
  • Loam: forms a soft ball that crumbles when you poke it.
  • Clay: forms a firm, sticky ball and squeezes out into a ribbon between thumb and finger.

Still not sure? Pick loam. Most garden beds sit between sand and clay.

How to measure canopy width

A tree with its canopy width marked across the widest branches and the circle under it shaded blue

Measure across the branches, from the tips of the outer leaves on one side to the tips on the other. A tape works, or pace it out.

Water the whole circle under the branches, shown in blue. The gallons here cover that circle.

A wider canopy means more gallons each watering, not more waterings. While the tree is young, measure again each spring.

How to tell it needs water

  • Soil dry 6 inches down within a few feet of the trunk of a young palm signals that it needs a deep soak
  • Fronds dulling and drooping over dry soil in desert summer heat can indicate thirst
  • A thick mat of roots rising above the soil around the trunk signals ground that stays too wet
  • Leaflets dying on one side of a frond, with dark streaks along its stalk, warrant a check for Fusarium wilt
  • A shrinking crown of living fronds despite steady care can point to Fusarium wilt rather than thirst

How to water it

  • Spread water evenly over the root zone around the trunk rather than flooding one spot at its base
  • Moisten the soil about a foot deep, splitting the watering into shorter runs if water starts to run off
  • Let the soil dry well between soakings, since constantly wet ground starves palm roots of oxygen
  • Plant in well-drained soil and avoid low spots, where wet conditions encourage a mat of surface roots
  • Keep lawn sprinklers off the trunk base, and widen the watered circle as the palm matures

Through the seasons

A newly planted palm needs deep watering through its first warm seasons while its roots establish, but the ground should never stay soggy. Established palms take deep soakings with the soil allowed to dry well between them. WUCOLS rates Canary Island date palm low water on the north-central coast, in the Central Valley, on the south coast and in South Inland. It rates moderate water in the high desert and the low desert. This evergreen keeps its crown all year, and winter rain usually covers it on the coast and in the Central Valley. Prune as little as possible, since pruning tools spread a lethal wilt disease.

In pots

A young Canary Island date palm can grow in a large container for a few years, though the species eventually needs open ground. Use a heavy pot with big drainage holes and a coarse, fast draining mix. Check the mix 2 inches down every few days in summer heat and water when it is dry there. Let water run through, then empty the saucer so the roots never stand wet. Mind the spines at the frond bases when moving the pot. In winter, water only when the mix starts to dry.

1 Your climate zone six WUCOLS zones, each from its own reference city
1.07gal per sq ft in JulyLow water use in the Central Valley zone
A year
6.84 gal per sq ft
Reference
Sacramento climate table
Counts
Plant need, before sprinkler losses
0.761.52.33.00.16JAN0.26FEB0.43MAR0.61APR0.83MAY0.99JUN1.07JUL0.95AUG0.72SEP0.47OCT0.22NOV0.14DEC0.761.52.33.00.16JFM0.61AMJ1.07JAS0.47OND
Gallons per square foot per month, Central Valley. Peak 1.07 in Jul, 6.84 a year.

Monthly water need by climate zone

Canary Island Date Palm: gallons per square foot per month, by WUCOLS climate zone

MonthN. CoastC. ValleyS. CoastS. InlandHi DesertLo Desert
Jan0.150.160.310.310.740.78
Feb0.210.260.320.350.930.93
Mar0.350.430.460.521.461.52
Apr0.470.610.560.641.891.95
May0.580.830.640.782.392.45
Jun0.640.990.690.922.852.79
Jul0.641.070.7913.042.85
Aug0.60.950.740.932.792.6
Sep0.50.720.60.742.142.08
Oct0.350.470.460.531.461.49
Nov0.190.220.330.360.930.96
Dec0.120.140.260.270.650.68
Year4.86.846.27.3721.2721.08

How this is worked out: the WUCOLS water rating for each zone times that zone’s climate for the month. A dash means WUCOLS does not rate the plant there. The figures are what the plant uses, before sprinkler losses.

Plants with the same water needs 16

Rated low water in the Central Valley, like Canary Island date palm. Plants that drink alike can share one valve and one schedule.

Olive TreesOlea europaea ssp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyFig TreesFicus carica ssp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyCrape MyrtleLagerstroemia spp., hybrids & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyAloeAloe spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyPomegranate TreesPunica granatumlow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyEucalyptusEucalyptus polyanthemoslow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyPine TreesPinus canariensislow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyJunipersJuniperus spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyTexas Red OakQuercus buckleyilow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyPortuguese OakQuercus faginealow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySoapbark TreeQuillaja saponarialow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyNecklace TreeSophora affinislow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyBailey AcaciaAcacia baileyanalow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySilver WattleAcacia dealbatalow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyGreen WattleAcacia decurrenslow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySydney Golden WattleAcacia longifolialow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in July
Minutes for your sprinklers

Turn this into minutes on your water days

Every city page has a calculator that takes Canary Island date palm, your sprinkler type and the month, and gives the minutes per water day for that supplier's schedule. Or put it in a zone of the personal watering plan and get all twelve months printed.

Questions people ask

How often should I water Canary Island date palm in summer?

In July, established Canary Island date palm in loam needs a deep watering about every 20 days in the Central Valley, about every 27 days on the south coast and about every 22 days in the South Inland zone. Sandy soil holds less water, so waterings come closer together. Clay stretches them. Check the soil before each watering and skip one after a soaking rain.

How much water does Canary Island date palm need per day?

In July in the Central Valley, established Canary Island date palm needs about 2.7 gallons a day under a 10 foot canopy and about 11 gallons a day under a 20 foot canopy. Give it in deep waterings spread days apart rather than a little every day, so the whole root zone gets wet.

Does watering for Canary Island date palm change across California?

Yes. WUCOLS rates Canary Island date palm separately for each of the six California climate zones: low water in the North-Central Coastal zone, low water in the Central Valley zone, low water in the South Coastal zone, low water in the South Inland zone, moderate water in the High and Intermediate Desert zone, moderate water in the Low Desert zone. The monthly table above shows how the same rating translates into different gallon amounts as reference evapotranspiration changes.

Why are the fronds on one side of my date palm dying?

Leaflets dying on one side of a frond, with dark streaks along its stalk, can signal Fusarium wilt. This disease is nearly always fatal and has no cure. Have the palm checked before blaming water, and never share unsterilized pruning tools between palms.

How should I prune a Canary Island date palm?

As little as possible. Two deadly fungal diseases of this palm are linked to pruning, and chain saws spread infection most readily. Use a hand saw disinfected before each palm, and remove only dead fronds.

Why are roots growing above the soil around my palm?

This palm forms a mat of above-ground roots, especially when the soil stays damp or wet. Those roots may give disease a way in. Cut back irrigation and improve drainage around the trunk.

Can Canary Island date palm grow near the beach?

Yes. It is a good seaside plant and adapts to most soils in sun or light shade. Give it plenty of room, since the crown can spread 20 to 40 feet.

Can I plant a new palm where one died of Fusarium wilt?

Not another Canary Island date palm. The fungus survives in the soil for at least 25 years and can infect the roots of a new palm of this species. Choose a different plant for that spot.

Is the fruit on my date palm a problem?

Female palms bear clusters of orange fruit after creamy yellow spring flowers, and fallen fruit makes messy litter. Removing fruit stalks means pruning, so weigh the mess against the disease risk. Do not send diseased palms or their seeds to green waste that becomes mulch.

More plant watering guides

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Sources