Can I top my palm tree?

Most shade trees can sprout new branches from buds along the trunk. Palms cannot. Once the growing bud at the top is cut, no new fronds can form, and the palm slowly dies.

If a palm is too tall for its spot, topping is not the fix. A better choice is to have a pro look at it and talk about removal and replanting with a smaller kind of tree.

The same goes for fronds. Remove only the dead brown ones, and leave the green ones. Because tall palms are risky to work on, hire an insured pro rather than climbing or cutting from a ladder.