Palm tree declining in Orlando.

Managing a client installation in November 2025, I was taken aback to see a distressed palm tree in a neighbor’s yard. I felt compelled to help, though I wondered if the homeowner would even be receptive. After a discreet closer inspection, I discovered the root cause, realizing sadly that there was no remedy for this palm tree. What was the problem? Did it happen during the January 2026 freeze? Who is at fault?

I will post the diagnosis on Better Lawns and Gardens Facebook page on April 2, 2026 Facebook

Thank you to everyone who responded with guesses!

Suggested Central Florida Plants Least Preferred By Deer

Wildlife use vegetation for a number of reasons: food, water, protection, physical and territorial behavior. A deer’s diet includes foliage, fruit (acorns), flowers and flower buds, but not necessarily all on the same plant, while young stags use the bark of small trees to “rub the velvet from their antlers and mark their area.” (Appleton, 2008) Deer like to eat plants that are young, easily accessible, over-fertilized, overwatered, pruned often, and have new growth. Deer do not like to eat plants that are odoriferous, have either grayish, leathery, or thorny foliage, or have foliage that has milky or sticky sap.

Reducing landscape damage by deer needs to be a community-wide effort. Feeding deer will only lessen their natural fear of humans and encourages them to encroach on residential areas. There are several options to keeping deer off your property. Installing seven-foot fencing will reduce chances that deer will jump onto property. Using chemical repellents are not always effective and can be expensive, foul-smelling, and need to be applied before plants are eaten and on a continuous basis.

To read the rest of my article and download my least preferred plants for deer in Central Florida, click this link.

Suggested Central Florida Plants Least Preferred By Deer.