Fertilizer salt build-up
Brown frond tips plus frequent feeding usually means fertilizer salts have built up in the soil.
Diagnosis
Fertilizer salt build-up
What's happening
Parlor palm is a light feeder with sensitive roots. Excess fertilizer salts accumulate in the mix and burn the fine root tips, which the plant shows as browning frond tips and a white, crusty residue on the soil surface or pot rim.
How to fix it
Flush the pot: run plenty of plain water through the soil until it drains freely from the bottom, repeating a few times to wash the salts out. Then cut back hard on feeding — a balanced liquid fertilizer at half strength every 4–6 weeks in the growing season only is plenty for this slow grower. Trim the dead tips to tidy it up.
What fixes it
- A long-spout watering can — A can with a fine, steady flow makes it easy to flush the soil thoroughly without flooding the room.
If that doesn't fix it
This is general guidance based on common symptoms; individual plants vary.
Read the full Parlor Palm care guide →
Reviewed June 2026 · how we check this