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Notebook · Guide 8 October 2026 · houseplants

Indoor palms: brown tips, spider mite and the ones that struggle

Brown tips usually mean dry air or uneven watering. Trim only the dead part, never cut the growing point, check for spider mite, and know that a majesty palm is hard work indoors.

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Almost every indoor palm gets brown tips sooner or later. The RHS puts it down mostly to underwatering or dry air, with draughts and knocks as the other usual causes. A few crisp ends on a green palm are cosmetic. Pale, speckled fronds are a different problem.

01At a glance

  • Brown tips: usually dry air or the compost drying out too far. Fix the cause; trimming only tidies.
  • Trim brown, not green: cut off the dead part and leave a thin brown edge.
  • Never cut the top of a stem: a palm grows from a single bud at the tip of each stem.
  • Pale, speckled fronds: look underneath for red spider mite. It loves warm, dry rooms.
  • Easiest to hardest: kentia palms put up with the most. Parlour palms cope with shade but want warmth. Majesty palms struggle in most homes.

02Why the tips go brown

  1. Dry air. Central heating in winter dries the air hard. Iowa State University Extension notes that many houseplants prefer 40–50% relative humidity, while homes in winter can drop to 10–20%.
  2. Uneven watering. Letting the compost dry out too long, then soaking it, browns the tips. The RHS says to keep compost from drying out in summer, and to let only the surface dry slightly before watering in winter. Never leave the pot standing in water.
  3. Salts in the compost. Too much feed builds up salts that scorch leaf ends. The RHS suggests feeding fortnightly from April to mid-September with a general liquid feed, and not at all for six to eight weeks after repotting.
  4. Heat and draughts. The RHS says to keep palms away from radiators and draughts, and out of direct sun through glass, which scorches most palms.

03How to trim, and what never to cut

Cut away only the brown part. The RHS advises not cutting into green tissue: leave a narrow strip of brown. Following the leaflet's natural point looks neater than a straight snip.

Remove a frond only when it is completely brown. Cut it at the stem rather than pulling it, as the RHS advises. The University of Georgia Extension explains why you should wait: a palm draws nutrients back out of its older fronds before they die.

Never cut the top off a stem. A palm has one growing point at the tip of each stem. The University of Georgia Extension warns that if that bud dies, a single-stemmed palm dies with it. Many shop palms are several plants or stems in one pot, but each stem still has only its one bud.

04Is it dry air or red spider mite?

  • Dry air: crisp brown tips and edges, but the green parts stay clean and glossy.
  • Red spider mite: fine pale mottling on the upper surface of the frond. Underneath you'll find tiny yellowish-green mites, white cast skins and, in a bad attack, fine silk webbing. The RHS suggests a ×10 hand lens. Leaves can lose colour and drop.

If you find mite, shower the whole plant, fronds and undersides, and check again weekly. The RHS says keeping humidity high and spraying with water lowers the risk but won't clear the mite by itself. The RHS's main non-chemical option is the predatory mite Phytoseiulus persimilis. Palms also get scale insects and mealybugs, so check for sticky fronds or small bumps too.

05Which palm, honestly

  • Kentia palm: the most forgiving. The RHS notes it tolerates cooler temperatures and drier air than most. Its main enemy is overwatering.
  • Parlour palm: copes with low light, but is prone to brown tips in dry air. The RHS gives it a winter minimum of 16°C and says it needs humid conditions.
  • Areca palm: needs bright light and warmth: keep it above about 12–13°C in winter (the RHS advises 13°C). It is a common spider mite target in dry rooms.
  • Majesty palm: the hard one. NC State Extension says it is native to Madagascar, needs consistent moisture and high humidity, and "may be difficult to grow indoors". It is sold cheaply almost everywhere, which hides how demanding it is. Buy one only if you can give it your brightest spot and steady moisture.

The RHS gives a winter minimum night temperature of 10–13°C for palms generally. Check each profile for your plant's own figure.

Save your money
Leaf-shine products. The RHS just says to sponge the dust off. A damp cloth does it, and clean fronds make mite easier to spot.
A misting bottle bought to fix brown tips. The RHS does suggest misting palms in heated rooms, but Iowa State notes it would need doing several times a day to make a real difference. Grouping plants, a pebble tray or a humidifier does more.
A cheap majesty palm as a "starter" palm. It's the fussiest of the four. A small kentia costs more but lasts.
A bigger pot. The RHS repots palms about every two years, in early spring, and only if pot-bound; in other years, replace the top 5cm of compost.

Before placing a majesty palm where children or pets can reach it, check the safety flags on our majesty palm profile.

How we checked this

Every care and safety claim on this page is verified against horticultural and veterinary sources.

Sources: RHS — Palms: indoors · RHS — Glasshouse red spider mite · University of Georgia Extension — Basic palm health and management · NC State Extension — Ravenea rivularis · Iowa State University Extension — Why does my houseplant have brown leaf tips and edges? · Iowa State University Extension — How can I raise the relative humidity indoors for my houseplants?

Checked 8 October 2026. If our advice ever conflicts with the RHS, believe them and tell us.