Cold hardiness & minimum temperature

Is Fishtail Parlour Palm (Chamaedorea ernesti-augusti)cold hardy? Hardiness zone & min temp

Also called Fishtail Parlour Palm, Ernest August's Palm, Xate Palm, Broad-leaf Lady Palm.

More about fishtail parlour palm

About Fishtail Parlour Palm

Chamaedorea ernesti-augusti · also called Fishtail Parlour Palm, Ernest August's Palm · houseplant

A distinctive, slow-growing understorey palm from the tropical forests of Mexico, Belize, and Guatemala, notable for its unusual simple, undivided leaves (rather than feathery fronds) that are deeply notched at the tip, giving them a two-lobed fishtail shape. It is highly shade-tolerant and compact, making it well-suited to low-light indoor rooms and conservatories. Temperature must stay above 10°C at all times — sudden cold draughts cause irreversible frond damage. Chamaedorea ernesti-augusti is considered non-toxic to cats and dogs.

Cold limit: USDA 10b-11 · RHS H1b (16 to 29°C)

Watch for — Cold draught damage: Brief exposure to temperatures below 10°C or cold air from windows and air conditioning units causes permanent brown patches or full browning of the unusual undivided leaves; site well away from draughts and never on a cold windowsill in winter.

What fishtail parlour palm's hardiness rating actually means

Fishtail Parlour Palm is not cold hardy. It is a tropical houseplant that dies if it is left out through frost — there is no zone where it overwinters outdoors in a UK or cold-US climate. Its RHS rating of H1b means: Sub-tropical — a normal warm home is fine, but it cannot go outside in a cool season. On the US scale that maps to USDA 10b-11 — the zones where it can be left outdoors year-round.

New to these scales? The USDA hardiness zone map explained covers how the zone numbers work, and you can find your own zone with the zone finder.

Minimum temperature — and what happens below it

Minimum survivable temperature is roughly about 10 °C (sustained cold below this is damaging). Fishtail Parlour Palm has no frost tolerance at all — it is an indoor plant in any climate with a real winter.

Concretely, for fishtail parlour palm as it gets too cold:

Below about about 10 °C, growth stalls and the leaves start to show cold stress — dark, water-soaked, or yellowing patches.
A single light frost blackens the foliage; a hard freeze kills the whole plant, roots included, and it does not recover.
Even a cold, draughty windowsill or an unheated porch in winter can be enough to damage it permanently.

Can fishtail parlour palm go outside or overwinter — and where?

It can holiday outdoors in summer once nights are reliably above 10 °C, in shade or dappled light, hardened off gradually.
Bring it back indoors well before the first autumn frost — do not wait for a frost warning, move it when nights drop toward 10-12 °C.
It will never overwinter outside in a temperate climate; the indoors is its winter home, full stop.

Work back from your local frost dates with the frost-date calculator: the last spring frost and first autumn frost are what really decide when fishtail parlour palm can be outside. US growers can check USDA zones; UK growers should use the RHS hardiness ratings, which match the H1b figure above.

Fishtail Parlour Palm hardiness — frequently asked questions

Is fishtail parlour palm cold hardy?

Fishtail Parlour Palm is not cold hardy. It is a tropical houseplant that dies if it is left out through frost — there is no zone where it overwinters outdoors in a UK or cold-US climate. Indoor-only in almost every home. Fishtail Parlour Palm can only live outside year-round in genuinely frost-free climates (roughly USDA 10b-11); everywhere else it is a houseplant that summers out at most.

What is the minimum temperature fishtail parlour palm can survive?

What hardiness zone is fishtail parlour palm?

Fishtail Parlour Palm is rated USDA 10b-11 and RHS H1b — Sub-tropical — a normal warm home is fine, but it cannot go outside in a cool season.

Can fishtail parlour palm survive winter outside?

It can holiday outdoors in summer once nights are reliably above 10 °C, in shade or dappled light, hardened off gradually. Bring it back indoors well before the first autumn frost — do not wait for a frost warning, move it when nights drop toward 10-12 °C. It will never overwinter outside in a temperate climate; the indoors is its winter home, full stop.

What happens to fishtail parlour palm below its minimum temperature?

Below about about 10 °C, growth stalls and the leaves start to show cold stress — dark, water-soaked, or yellowing patches. A single light frost blackens the foliage; a hard freeze kills the whole plant, roots included, and it does not recover. Even a cold, draughty windowsill or an unheated porch in winter can be enough to damage it permanently.