Palms are the backbone of a Dubai garden — and the trees people most often get wrong. We supply, plant, transplant, trim and care for palms across Dubai, and we do it the way palms actually need rather than the way they are usually done.
Free site visit. Fixed price. And unlike damas, palm roots will not wreck your pipes or your pool.
What we do with palms
- Supply and planting — date palms, foxtail, washingtonia, royal, areca and more, planted at the correct depth
- Transplanting mature palms — moving an established palm within your garden, or bringing in a large specimen for instant maturity
- Trimming and frond removal — done correctly, taking only dead fronds
- Feeding and nutrient correction — diagnosing and fixing the potassium, magnesium and manganese deficiencies that are endemic in Dubai’s sandy soil
- Health inspection — including checking for the early signs of red palm weevil
- Safe removal of dead, dying or badly placed palms
- Irrigation set up correctly for establishment and beyond
The depth mistake that kills palms
More palms die from being planted too deep than from almost anything else. Bury the base of the trunk and you suffocate the root initiation zone. The palm then declines slowly — yellowing, stalling, rotting at the base — and dies a year or two later, long after anyone connects it to the planting.
A palm goes in at exactly the depth it was already growing at. The hole is wider than the root ball, never deeper. It sounds simple. It is routinely got wrong.
Why we will not “tidy up” your palm
The most damaging thing done to palms in Dubai is over-trimming — cutting off healthy green fronds to give that shaved, upright, pineapple look.
A palm feeds its new growth by withdrawing nutrients from its older fronds. Strip those fronds and you are starving the tree. It also creates fresh wounds, and fresh wounds attract the red palm weevil.
We remove fronds that are fully brown and dead. We leave the green ones on. Your palm will look less severely barbered and live a great deal longer. There is more in our guide to palm tree care and trimming in Dubai.
Red palm weevil: inspection and honest advice
The red palm weevil is the most serious threat to date palms in the UAE. The larvae bore in and eat the palm from the inside, so by the time the damage shows on the outside it is often severe.
Signs we look for:
- A wilting, drooping or lopsided crown, or a collapsing spear leaf
- Holes or tunnels in the trunk, with chewed fibre pushed out
- Oozing rust-coloured sap with a sour, fermenting smell
- Frond bases that come away far too easily
Being straight with you about what happens next. In the UAE, suspected red palm weevil infestations are subject to mandatory reporting, and the treatment itself — injecting pesticide into the trunk — is licensed pest-control work. So if we find it, we will tell you exactly what we are seeing, help you report it to Dubai Municipality, and make sure it is dealt with properly.
What we will not do is quietly cut down an infested palm and cart it away. Moving infested material is how the weevil spreads to your neighbours’ trees.
Prevention is the part we can really help with: no unnecessary wounds, no over-trimming, nothing nailed into the trunk, sound feeding so the palm is vigorous, and regular inspection — especially of Canary Island date palms, which the weevil particularly likes.
Palms and your pipes: the good news
If you have been through the misery of damas tree removal, this will be a relief. Palms are monocots: they grow a dense mat of thin, fibrous roots from the base rather than thickening woody roots. They do not lever up paving, crack boundary walls or invade drains. Sensible clearance from structures is still wise, but you are not planting a future pipe disaster.
Which palm should you plant?
- Date Palm — the classic. Iconic, hardy, and it fruits. Needs room.
- Foxtail Palm — soft, feathery and beautifully proportioned. Our usual recommendation for a villa garden.
- Washingtonia — very tall and fast. Superb for driveways and avenues; too big for a courtyard.
- Royal Palm — formal and elegant. Thirstier than most.
- Areca Palm — clumping, excellent as a soft green screen.
- Canary Island Date Palm — dramatic, but the weevil’s favourite. Only with proper monitoring.
And one we will usually talk you out of: the coconut palm. Dubai’s dry heat and winter dips are not what it wants, and it tends to look thin and sorry for itself. Full detail in our guide to planting palm trees and date palms in Dubai.
Palm services FAQs
Can you move a big palm I already have?
Usually yes. Palms transplant better than most trees because they regenerate roots from the base. We tie the crown, lift with the root ball intact, replant at the correct depth and brace it properly.
Can I get dates from it?
Only female palms fruit, and they need pollinating by hand. Grow from an offshoot, not seed — seed-grown palms are roughly half male and will not match the parent. It takes a few years.
How much does it cost?
It depends on the species, the size, the access and whether we are planting, moving or removing. We look at it and give you a fixed price. The site visit is free.
Do you cover my area?
All of Dubai — see areas we serve.
Book palm tree services in Dubai
Call +971 50 495 4437, message us on WhatsApp, or book a free site visit. Part of our full tree services, alongside planting, irrigation and garden maintenance in Dubai.