help please my Northfolk pine tree is ill...:-0

arty540 · #1 April 5th, 2006, 08:02 PM

hello i'm a newbie my Northfolk pine tree is not well it's been fine for 20 years indoors 8foot its lovely my pride and joy but just a few months ago the fronds started to go blackish brown and then fall off I've lost about 5 fronds help me please!!!!!!!!!!!
regards Arty

**Rima** · #2 April 6th, 2006, 05:58 PM

Well what are you doing with it... water wise, temp. wise, humidity, and sun? It's hard to diagnose without any info.

arty540 · #3 April 7th, 2006, 07:46 PM

Hi Rima,thanks For Reply, Well It Get Indirect Sunlight.water Good Once Week Which Has Been Okay For Ages,but It Is Indoors So It Gets The Ducted Heating In Winter Which Is About To Start Now,i Think Its Some Type Of Mould,it Has Hit The Ceiling,do You Think It Could Take Being Moved Out Doors After 20 Years Inside?

arty540 · #4 April 7th, 2006, 07:52 PM

Hi Rima,thanks For Reply, Well It Get Indirect Sunlight.water Good Once Week Which Has Been Okay For Ages,but It Is Indoors So It Gets The Ducted Heating In Winter Which Is About To Start Now,i Think Its Some Type Of Mould,it Has Hit The Ceiling,do You Think It Could Take Being Moved Out Doors After 20 Years Inside?
Regards Arty

**Rima** · #5 April 7th, 2006, 08:31 PM

Hi, you said it's hit the ceiling, well that seems like it could be a problem, but I think you really need to get some help, get it out of the pot, check the roots for rot (black, slimy, stinky) and cut them back to healthy places unless it's all shot, in which case... When you repot, try a slightly larger pot, add a bunch of grit of some kind to the soil (but no salt-soaked sea sand please.. aquarium gravel is great) and take it easy on the water for a while, but maybe a light applic. of a house plant fungicide (read the label for amts) in the first watering would be good. If the temp. in Melbourne stays above 40 Fahr. all winter, then putting it outside (now, to acclimatize it) would be fine, though not in full sun. It's not a tree you can 'top', so you don't have a lot of choice... Good luck!

**Rima** · #6 April 7th, 2006, 08:35 PM

I also suggest that if you want more info., look down the forum list for the one on Monkey puzzle trees, because they're closely related and people on that forum may have lots of good advice, but remind them where you live!

CarolineRC · #7 April 10th, 2006, 01:14 PM

Hi! I also have a Norfolk Pine that is an indoor plant and is about 12 feet high. Occasionally a few fronds dry up and fall off; I don't think that it's a problem since there is also new growth...does yours have newer, bright green needles on some of the tips of other fronds? Also, I tried putting mine outside last summer...boy oh boy...it did not like that! Too much sun and wind I think. I brought it back inside and it was fine.

**Luke Harding** · #8 April 13th, 2006, 08:03 AM

Hi,
Not sure Melbourne will be quite warm enough for a Norfolk Island Pine to go outside for the whole year. Its quite normal for the lower branches to drop off as the plant gets taller, but only as long as the top growth is still healthy. If you think the tree is on its way out it may be worth trying to coppice it. It is one of only a few conifer species that responds to hard pruning and coppicing. It usually comes back as a multi-stemmed plant as a result but you can always prune excess stems off to form a single stemmed plant again.
I saw Norfolk Island Pine (Araucaria heterophylla) growing happily in the Canary Islands off the north coast of Africa a couple of years ago. It obviously doesn't mind heat or well drained soil, as the island I was on is very volcanic and incredibly hot in late summer.
Usually, keeping the tree pot bound is advisable when trying to keep the height controlled but it may be worth moving it into the next pot size up and giving it some fresh compost.
Hope it survives,
Luke