The cat palm is an elegant palm that brightens up indoor spaces with ease. Although the slender fronds may look delicate, the plants are actually easy to care for when grown as houseplants. That makes the cat palm a great choice if you’re new to growing plants.
However, you should still know the basics of cat palm care. Understanding when to water your plant, how much sun it needs, and how to deal with pests will all help you keep your plant healthy. So, let’s dig into how to care for a cat palm.
What Is a Cat Palm?
The cat palm (Chamaedorea cataractarum) is a small palm tree native to tropical parts of Mexico and Central America. You may also hear people refer to the cascade palm or cataract palm.
Cat palms are closely related to other palms in the Chamaedorea genus. These plants include popular houseplants like the parlor palm and bamboo palm. While most of these species have notable stems, the cat palm does not.
Althoug the cat palm lacks true stems, it forms clusters of slender green leaf stems that appear from a central base. The stems are topped with elegant fronds covered with long, slender leaflets. The plants can grow over six feet tall in the wild, but they typically remain closer to three feet when grown indoors.
Cat palms have become popular houseplants thanks to their low-maintenance habit and beautiful form. With the right care, they can grow well in most home environments and live for decades.
How to Care for a Cat Palm
Cat palms can remain happy and healthy in most homes and offices. However, keeping them happy involves providing them with the right amount of water and light, the correct temperature and humidity, and a well-suited soil mix. Here are some basics of cat palm care.
Choose a Suitable Container
If your cat palm is going to be living indoors, one of the most important care steps is choosing a suitable pot.
First, consider container size. Choose a pot that’s just a few inches larger than the plant’s rootball. If you’re moving your palm from a flimsy plastic nursery pot to a more permanent home, choose a container that’s two to three inches larger than the original.
The material isn’t important; ceramic, terra cotta, heavy plastic, and glass all work well. However, take note that soil in terra cotta pots will dry out more quickly. No matter which material you choose, make sure the bottom of the pot has drainage holes that allow excess water to escape.
Use a Well-Draining Potting Mix
Since cat palms dislike sitting in wet soil, you must choose a coarse and well-draining mix. Rather than using a potting mix designed for most houseplants or garden beds, look for a mix that’s designed for palms and cacti. These mixes have a chunkier texture that provides excellent drainage.
If you can’t find a palm potting mix or want to use up an old bag you have lying around the house, you can amend regular soilless potting mixes. Mix two parts of the potting mix with one part perlite or pine bark fines. These materials will provide extra drainage and help keep your cat palm happy.
Provide Bright, Indirect Light
One of the most important aspects of proper cat palm care is providing the right type and amount of light. Since these plants are used to growing in tropical regions, they like lots of light. However, they prefer bright, indirect light.
Some ideal spots for a cat palm include in front of an east-facing or west-facing window, in the middle of a bright room, or near a south-facing window covered with a sheer curtain. Although the plants can survive with less light, they may become stunted, discolored, or weak.
Keep the Air Warm and Moist
Since these plants are native to tropical environments, keeping them warm is a key part of keeping them happy. Ideally, they’ll stay in a room that’s between 70-80°F during the day and a bit cooler at night. However, they can handle cooler air as long as you avoid sudden changes and temperatures below 50°F.
It’s important to place your cat palm in an area free from hot and cold drafts. Exposure to air conditioning vents, fireplaces, and open windows can stress the plant.
Cat palms prefer moderate to high humidity. Therefore, you should boost the moisture if your home is extremely dry. A humidifier is the most reliable way to increase the humidity, but you can also regularly mist the air around your palm.
Water When Dry
Providing too much water and too little water are two reasons why cat palms suffer. That means knowing when and how to water are key parts of cat palm plant care.
First, don’t assume you should water on a set schedule. Factors including temperature, light, soil type, and humidity all impact how quickly the soil dries and therefore how often you should water. That means you may need to water your plant more in the long days of summer than in the short days of winter.
Instead, use the soil moisture as your guide. Cat palms like their soil to remain slightly moist, but it’s okay if a bit of the soil dries out completely. Sticking your finger in the top two inches of soil can help you determine if you need to water. If the top two inches are dry, go ahead and water. However, hold off on adding water if they feel moist.
When you water make sure to thoroughly saturate all of the soil. This involve slowly adding water so it can soak into the potting soil, or bottom watering your plants. When all of the soil is moist, make sure to remove any water that collects in a catch dish.
Fertilize Sparingly
Although potted cat palms need nutrients to remain green and healthy, growers often make the mistake of adding too much fertilizer. Make sure to choose a low nutrient fertilizer with an NPK ratio like 1-1-1. Diluted the fertilizer to half the recommended strength then apply it to your palm plant.
Add fertilizer once every two months from the early spring through middle of summer. Avoid adding fertilizer during the fall and winter.
Watch Out for Pests
When you’re growing a cat palm indoors, you should keep an eye out for common houseplant pests. These include tiny critters like aphids, thrips, spider mites, scale, and whiteflies. Although these pests differ in appearance, they all damage plants by piercing their leaves and sucking their sap. This can lead to yellow fronds and weak plants.
If you spot a few pests, you can wipe them off your palm with a wet, soapy rag. This offers effective control in most cases. However, if you have a true outbreak you can spray the pests with neem oil or insecticidal soap.
Order Plants Today
Adding a new plant to your home is an easy way to brighten the space and add natural element. However, we don’t always think of adding a potted palm or cacti to our homes. That’s why we make it easy to send plants to those you love and order some for yourself.
While the cat palm adds a beautiful tropical touch to spaces, we get it’s not for everyone. That’s why we offer rugged cacti, small potted plants, and trailing vines. No matter what plant you choose, you can turn to us for care tips. For example, we’ve shared what we know about caring for Chinese evergreen and put together a peperomia plant care guide.
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