Photo: Forest & Kim Starr / CC BY 3.0 / Wikimedia Commons

Parlour palm

Chamaedorea elegans

The cheapest real palm in Dubai shops, and one of the easiest: it takes dim rooms and dry air, grows slowly and is safe around cats and dogs. Keep it out of vent draughts and check for spider mites.

Mature size0.3–1.2 m tall, 0.3–0.9 m spreadGrowthSlowSunPart shadeWaterModerate

Drought: 2 of 5

Shade: 4 of 5

Ease of care: 4 of 5

Use in a design Get it looked after

Indoors in Dubai

Parlour palm indoors

Light it grows well in

Low (suits it)
Medium (suits it)
Bright (suits it)
Sun (does not suit it)

Best in a room with daylight but no direct sun. A dim corner works but growth is slow and it can yellow. Hot afternoon sun at west or south glass in summer scorches the fronds.

Dry, air-conditioned air

4 of 5

1 means it needs humidity help, 5 means it does not mind.

Under air conditioning: Keep it out of the direct airflow of ceiling and wall units, which browns the tips. Wipe the fronds every few weeks and check the undersides for spider mites.

Cats and dogs

Pet-safe

Listed by the ASPCA as non-toxic to dogs and cats (Parlor Palm, Chamaedorea elegans). NC State notes that the fruit pulp can irritate sensitive skin, though fruit is rare indoors. Any plant can upset a pet's stomach if eaten in quantity, so watch a chewer.

Size: TabletopSits on a table or shelf
Rooms: Bedroom Home office Living room Bathroom Hallway
In Dubai shops: Easy to findMost garden centres and supermarkets
Outdoors: Indoors only

All indoor plants for Dubai More plants for low light

Season

Through the Dubai year

How Parlour palm behaves through Dubai's seasons, month by month.

JJan

FFeb

MMar

AApr

MMay

JJun

JJul

AAug

SSep

OOct

NNov

DDec

Avg high °C

24°

26°

29°

34°

38°

40°

42°

40°

36°

31°

27°

Buy and pot up

Feb – Apr

Light monthly feed

Mar – Oct

New fronds

Apr – Sep

Check for spider mites

Apr – Oct

Growth almost stops

Buy and pot up: Feb–Apr, Oct–Nov
Bring plants home in the cooler months, not through a 45°C car park.
Light monthly feed: Mar–Oct
Balanced liquid fertiliser. Skip it from December to February.
New fronds: Apr–Sep
Check for spider mites: Apr–Oct
Warm, dry rooms suit them. Look at the underside of the fronds every week or two.
Growth almost stops: Dec–Feb
Water less and keep it away from cold glass at night.

A parlour palm looks much the same all year, so its calendar is about pace and pests. From March to October, longer days and warmer rooms push the slow new fronds, the months to feed, and the months to check for spider mites, especially once the AC is running all day. From December to February growth almost stops. Water less, skip feeding, and keep it away from a cold window at night. October to November and February to April are the months to buy and pot up, before the heat and after it.

Meet the plant

Meet the Parlour palm

Meet the parlour palm, the slender little palm that fits where bigger palms cannot. In the wild it is an understorey plant, native from Mexico to Guatemala, growing in the shade of taller trees rather than in open sun. That is why a living room with daylight but no direct sun suits it far better than a hot windowsill, and why it is on sale at IKEA and in online plant shops across the UAE.

It stays small and slow. A young plant is usually 30 to 60 cm tall and can take years to reach about 1.2 m, so it fits a shelf, a desk or a side table without taking over. Slim, arching fronds rise from a clump of thin stems, which gives it the soft, feathery look of a much bigger palm in a pot you can lift with one hand.

In a Dubai flat the enemy is not the dim corner but the vent. Air from a vent dries the fronds and browns the tips, and warm, dry rooms are exactly what spider mites like. Place it where the air is still, wipe the fronds every few weeks, and it will outlast most other plants on the shelf.

Parlour palm (Chamaedorea elegans) is a small, single-clump palm from the rainforests of Mexico and Guatemala. NC State Extension describes it as one of the plants that adapts well to dry indoor air, and it holds the RHS Award of Garden Merit for being easy and reliable. Its slender, dark green fronds suit bedrooms, desks and shaded shelves where bigger palms such as Areca palm would not fit.

Bright, indirect light gives the best growth. It tolerates a dim corner, but in low light it grows slowly and can yellow, and direct sun, especially hot afternoon sun through west or south glass, scorches the fronds. Water when the soil is dry about 5 cm down and never leave it standing in water: overwatering is the usual cause of failure, not neglect.

Feed lightly from March to October, repot only every few years, and wipe the fronds with a damp cloth to remove dust and discourage red spider mites. Plants are either male or female, and tiny yellow flowers appear only on mature plants, so fruit is rare indoors. For a larger, slower, more formal palm, see Kentia palm or Lady palm.

Design

Where to use it

Desk or shelf palmLow-light cornerBedroom plant for a household with petsUnderplanting beside a taller palm

Use it where a full-size palm would not fit: the end of a console, a bedroom corner away from the vent, a shelf in a room that gets daylight but no direct sun. Group two or three in one wide pot for a fuller look, or stand one at the foot of a Kentia palm in a villa hallway. Keep it out of the airflow from ceiling cassettes and wall units, which dry the fronds quickly, and away from a hot west window.

Cast iron plant

Cast iron plant takes the darkest corner and, like parlour palm, is listed by the ASPCA as non-toxic, so the pair works in a home with cats or dogs.

Peperomia

A compact peperomia on the same shelf adds a rounded, glossy leaf against the palm's fine fronds, and also suits a pet-safe home.

Kentia palm

Kentia is the tall, formal palm for the floor, and parlour palm gives the same look at desk height for a fraction of the price.

Care guide

How to grow it in Dubai

Watering: Summer: Water when the soil is dry about 5 cm down, typically about a week apart in summer; lift the pot to learn how heavy it is when dry. Let it drain fully and never leave it standing in water.
Winter: Water less, often every two to three weeks, as growth almost stops from December to February. Check the soil first.
Establishment: For the first month at home, leave it where you put it, water by the finger test and keep it away from the vent while it settles.
Soil: A light, fast-draining mix: a standard houseplant compost with a handful of perlite. The RHS suggests a peat-free, loam-free mix, and NC State a humus-rich container mix.
Feeding: Feed monthly from March to October with a balanced liquid fertiliser; skip winter. Every four to six months, flush the pot with at least twice its volume of plain water to wash out fertiliser and mineral salts.
Pruning: Cut only fronds that are fully brown, at the base. Never cut the growing tip, and when trimming brown tips leave a narrow brown margin rather than cutting into green.
Planting: Repot only every few years, in spring, into a pot about 2 cm wider; a much bigger pot stays wet and the roots rot. Buy and pot up in October to November or February to April.
Pests: Spider mitesMealybugsScale insects

Avoid these

Common mistakes

Standing it in the airflow from a ceiling or wall AC unit. Dry air from the unit browns the frond tips; move it out of the airflow to still air.
Cutting into the green when trimming brown tips. Leave a narrow brown margin, as the RHS advises, rather than cutting into the green.
Watering on a calendar. The roots rot if the soil stays wet, so check about 5 cm down and water only when it is dry there.
Moving it into a much bigger pot to make it grow. Parlour palm is slow by nature and an oversized pot stays wet around the roots.
Parking it on a west-facing sill. Hot afternoon sun at a west window scorches the fronds.

Extra notes

Good to know

The ASPCA lists parlour palm (Parlor Palm, Chamaedorea elegans) as non-toxic to dogs and cats. NC State notes that the fruit pulp can irritate sensitive skin, but fruit is rare indoors.
Dubai shops often sell it as 'bamboo palm'. The ASPCA lists that as one of its common names, but other palms share it, so check for Chamaedorea elegans on the label.
Plants are male or female. Only mature plants flower, with tiny yellow flowers in clusters, so a small plant from a shop will not set fruit.
Dubai prices checked on 7 October 2026: from about AED 15 for a 9 cm pot at IKEA (shown as unavailable for delivery that day), from AED 25 for 15 to 35 cm and from AED 39 for 30 to 40 cm at online shops. Compare heights, not just prices.

Toxicity: Listed by the ASPCA as non-toxic to dogs and cats (Parlor Palm, Chamaedorea elegans). NC State notes that the fruit pulp can irritate sensitive skin, though fruit is rare indoors. Any plant can upset a pet's stomach if eaten in quantity, so watch a chewer.

Pros

Copes with dim rooms and dry air-conditioned air
Slow and compact: fits a desk, shelf or side table
Listed by the ASPCA as non-toxic to cats and dogs
One of the cheapest true palms in Dubai shops and at IKEA
Feathery fronds without a large, heavy pot

Cons

Tips brown quickly in a direct AC draught
Prone to spider mites in warm, dry rooms
Slow: a small plant stays small for years
Scorches in hot sun through west or south glass

FAQ

Common questions

Can a parlour palm live in a low-light room in Dubai?

Yes. NC State says it tolerates low light, but the RHS says bright, indirect light gives the best growth and too little makes it yellow. A room with daylight and no direct sun is ideal, and a dim corner works if you accept slow growth.

Why are the tips of my parlour palm turning brown?

The usual causes are dry air, a direct draught from the AC, watering too little, or salts building up in the pot. The RHS links brown palm tips to underwatering or a dry atmosphere. Move it out of the airflow, check the soil about 5 cm down, flush the pot with plain water, and trim the tips leaving a narrow brown margin.

Is parlour palm safe for cats and dogs?

The ASPCA lists it as non-toxic to dogs and cats. Chewing any plant can still cause mild stomach upset, so keep an eye on a pet that nibbles fronds.

How big does a parlour palm get, and how fast?

The RHS gives 30 to 60 cm as typical, and it can reach about 1.2 m over time. It is slow growing and can stay in its original pot for several years, which makes it a good choice for a desk or shelf.

How often should I water a parlour palm in an air-conditioned room?

Water when the soil is dry about 5 cm down rather than on a set day; in summer that is typically about once a week. Check the soil and lift the pot, because the AC changes how fast it dries. Always let the water drain away.

Not sure how it suits your garden?

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