Skip to content
ComingThe Ptolemy client portal: your map, reports, schedule and spending in one place.Portal coming:See what’s insideClient sign-in
Ptolemy(239) 467-0142Request the free master planFree master plan

Palm and Tree Library

Field Notes

What we see in the field across Southwest Florida, written for the managers, boards and superintendents who run communities: the threats that kill palms, the budget calendar, soil and water, and the standards behind the work. See the guides

9posts in Threats

2026

7 notes
ThreatsNovember 4, 2026 · 3 min readIn TCI Magazine: Lethal Bronzing in Palms, Test Before You TreatTree Care Industry Magazine published Jeff Kaulbars' article on lethal bronzing. The short version, for the people who answer for the palms.ThreatsOctober 27, 2026 · 4 min readPalm Pests in Southwest Florida: Which Ones Actually MatterThe pest that blackens a frond rarely kills the palm, and the one that kills it is usually hidden until it is too late.ThreatsOctober 20, 2026 · 4 min readLethal Bronzing: What Boards Should Know Before ActingLethal bronzing is fatal, rides one insect, and cannot be called by eye, so we test a palm before anyone treats or removes it.ThreatsOctober 13, 2026 · 4 min readPalm Leaf Diseases vs. the KillersA spotted frond is rarely the emergency, four palm diseases have no cure, and a lab test is how we tell them apart.ThreatsOctober 6, 2026 · 4 min readFusarium Wilt Travels on Pruning SawsFusarium wilt moves palm to palm on contaminated tools and hides for months, so the defense is a clean saw and no susceptible replant.ThreatsSeptember 22, 2026 · 4 min readGanoderma Butt Rot: When a Conk Means the Palm Is LostGanoderma butt rot has no treatment, rots the base while the canopy still looks fine, and turns a palm into a collapse risk.ThreatsApril 14, 2026 · 5 min readOTC Injections: Why We Keep Them as a Last ResortQuarterly antibiotic injections leave dozens of permanent holes and slow lethal bronzing without stopping it, so the Palm Health Program comes first.

2025

2 notes
ThreatsAugust 5, 2025 · 5 min readLethal Bronzing Has a Season, and the Damage Shows Up Months LaterThe insect that spreads lethal bronzing peaks in August and September, and a palm infected now may look fine until spring.ThreatsJune 10, 2025 · 5 min readNew Palms and the Palmetto Weevil: The First Six Months Matter MostA freshly moved palm gives off the signal this beetle looks for, so new installs go on the watch list from day one.

From reading to a plan

See where your palms and trees stand.

Start with the free master plan. We walk the property, map what you have and write one plan for 10 years, with an estimated budget each year.

Request the free master plan
How a plan fits your budgetThe Palm Health Program