Spider mites
Fine webbing in the frond joints plus a stippled, dusty look is the majesty palm's most common pest: spider mites.
Diagnosis
Spider mites
What's happening
Spider mites are tiny sap-suckers that thrive in the warm, dry indoor air majesty palms are often kept in, and this palm is one of their favorite targets. They cluster on the undersides of the feathery fronds, piercing cells and draining them, which leaves a fine pale speckling and dusty look. As the colony grows you'll see delicate webbing strung between the leaflets.
How to fix it
Isolate the palm so the mites don't spread. Rinse the fronds thoroughly in the shower, top and bottom, to knock the population down, then treat every surface — especially the undersides — with neem oil, repeating every 5–7 days for three or four rounds to catch newly hatched mites. Raising humidity makes the plant far less hospitable to them, so a pebble tray or humidifier helps prevent a repeat.
What fixes it
- Neem oil for pests — Neem oil smothers spider mites and their eggs; repeat every 5–7 days on the frond undersides until the webbing is gone.
If that doesn't fix it
This is general guidance based on common symptoms; individual plants vary.
Read the full Majesty Palm care guide →
Reviewed June 2026 · how we check this