Light. Grows best in full sun but tolerates partial shade.
Water. Water regularly until it is established. After that it is fairly drought tolerant.
Soil and feeding. It is well adapted to Florida's poor soils and seldom shows deficiencies. For best growth, feed with an 8-2-12-4Mg palm fertilizer with micronutrients, such as Palm Special. Small, deformed new leaves and stuck spear leaves point to boron deficiency.
Size. Grows fairly fast to about 6 ft, then slowly; expect about 12–15 ft. Very old palms can eventually reach 20–25 ft, with a 5–8 ft canopy.
Pruning. It is self-cleaning, so dead leaves drop on their own. Cut off flower stalks before fruit forms if fallen fruit would be a mess.
Problems to watch. Lethal yellowing has no cure; leaves wilt and discolor, and the oldest leaf often kinks. Remove any shelf-like conks at the trunk base, a sign of Ganoderma butt rot.
Good to know. Cold hardy only to about 30°F. It is moderately tolerant of salt spray.
Sources: UF/IFAS EDIS ENH-815: Adonidia merrillii, Christmas Palm · UF/IFAS Gardening Solutions: Christmas Palm
