WateringTimesWatering plan, $19
Rhopalostylis sapida, WUCOLS IV

How often to water nikau palm in California

In July on the south coast, established nikau palm in loam needs a deep watering about every 7 days: about 55 gallons each time under a 10 foot canopy, about 56 gallons a week. Nikau palm is a slow-growing feather palm from New Zealand that reaches 20 to 33 feet over decades. A smooth, bulging, glossy green crownshaft tops its ringed trunk, and upright leaves form a shuttlecock-shaped crown. Lilac-cream flowers lead to fruits that take almost a year to turn deep red. It wants mild, humid, frost-free gardens, moist soil and partial shade.

TreePalm or cycadRated for 2 of 6 zones

How often to water nikau 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 nikau 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 drying at the surface around the trunk in summer means nikau palm needs water
  • Leaf tips browning in dry wind or hot sun point to too little humidity and water
  • New leaves emerging pale or burned point to too much direct sun
  • Leaves yellowing in waterlogged, airless soil point to overwatering

How to water it

  • Keep the soil consistently moist with slow, deep watering
  • Plant in partial shade, sheltered from wind and direct sun
  • Use moist but well-drained soil
  • Mulch the root zone to hold moisture
  • Skip pruning, since it needs none

Through the seasons

Water a new palm generously and keep it moist while roots establish. Established palms still need high, steady water and partial shade through the dry months, since they come from mild, humid forests. Growth is slow, and a palm takes decades to mature. WUCOLS rates nikau palm high water on the south coast and in South Inland. WUCOLS marks it as not suited to the Central Valley, the high desert or the low desert, and has not evaluated it for the north-central coast.

In pots

Nikau palm grows well in a large container, which suits its slow growth. Use a moisture-holding but well-drained mix. Water when the surface begins to dry, until it drains through. In summer, check pots every day or two, and keep them in bright shade. Empty the saucer if water sits for long. Watch for scale and mealybugs. In winter, keep the mix lightly moist.

1 Your climate zone six WUCOLS zones, each from its own reference city
Not ratedWUCOLS does not rate Nikau Palm for the Central Valley zone
A year
no figure
Reference
Sacramento climate table
Counts
Plant need, before sprinkler losses

WUCOLS lists Nikau Palm as not suited to this region for the Central Valley zone, so no monthly figure is computed here.

Monthly water need by climate zone

Nikau Palm: gallons per square foot per month, by WUCOLS climate zone

MonthN. CoastC. ValleyS. CoastS. InlandHi DesertLo Desert
Jan––1.241.24––
Feb––1.291.39––
Mar––1.842.08––
Apr––2.232.58––
May––2.583.12––
Jun––2.783.67––
Jul––3.174.02––
Aug––2.983.72––
Sep––2.382.98––
Oct––1.842.13––
Nov––1.341.44––
Dec––1.041.09––
Year––24.829.46––

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 not suited to this region in the Central Valley, like nikau palm. Plants that drink alike can share one valve and one schedule.

Sugar MapleAcer saccharumnot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingQueensland KauriAgathis robustanot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingCherimoyaAnnona cherimolanot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingPurple Orchid TreeBauhinia variegata (purpurea)not rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingToogBischofia javanicanot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingClustered Fishtail PalmCaryota mitisnot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingWhite SapoteCasimiroa edulisnot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingFilbertCorylus maximanot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingSpotted GumCorymbia maculata (Eucalyptus maculata)not rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingDove TreeDavidia involucratanot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingRoyal PoincianaDelonix regianot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingTriangle PalmDypsis decaryinot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingMountain White GumEucalyptus dalrympleananot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingRainbow EucalyptusEucalyptus degluptanot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingRoxburgh FigFicus auriculatanot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingIndian BanyanFicus benghalensisnot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley rating
Minutes for your sprinklers

Turn this into minutes on your water days

Every city page has a calculator that takes nikau 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 nikau palm in summer?

In July, established nikau palm in loam needs a deep watering about every 7 days on the south coast and about every 5 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 nikau palm need per day?

In July on the south coast, established nikau palm needs about 8.0 gallons a day under a 10 foot canopy and about 32 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 nikau palm change across California?

Yes. WUCOLS rates nikau palm separately for each of the six California climate zones: not evaluated in the North-Central Coastal zone, not suited to this region in the Central Valley zone, high water in the South Coastal zone, high water in the South Inland zone, not suited to this region in the High and Intermediate Desert zone, not suited to this region in the Low Desert zone. The monthly table above shows how the same rating translates into different gallon amounts as reference evapotranspiration changes.

How fast does nikau palm grow?

It is slow growing and takes 20 to 50 years to mature. Its final height is about 20 to 33 feet. Patience pays off.

Does nikau palm need shade?

Yes, it wants partial shade with shelter from wind and direct sun. Hot sun burns the leaves. Humid, mild sites suit it best.

How much water does nikau palm need?

WUCOLS rates it high water where it is rated. Keep the soil consistently moist. Do not let it dry out in summer.

What pests bother nikau palm?

Scale insects, mealybugs and sometimes spider mites can appear. It is generally disease free. Check under the leaves.

Why is it called a feather duster palm?

Its upright leaves form a shuttlecock or feather duster shape. A bulging green crownshaft sits below them. It looks very tidy.

More plant watering guides

Roxburgh FigIndian BanyanWeeping Chinese BanyanRubber PlantFiddleleaf FigMoreton Bay FigIndian Laurel FigBo-Tree

Sources