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- What Is Lethal Bronzing
- Origin Of Lethal Bronzing
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THE TEXAS ORIGIN STORY: THE NAME “LETHAL BRONZING"
How Gary Kennemer Defined a Disease
Gary Kennemer, a native Texan raised between Galveston and Houston, has spent his entire life working with palms, restoring palms, and researching palm health across the Gulf Coast. When the mysterious palm-killing disease first appeared in South Texas, it was labeled Texas Phoenix Palm Decline (TPPD)—a name that immediately struck Gary as misleading and dangerously inaccurate.
Gary had already become known as Texas’ most respected palm specialist, and his instinct told him the disease was far more widespread and severe than the name suggested. He recognized early on that the bronzed crown collapse looked nothing like a date-palm-specific issue, and nothing about it felt “Texas-only.” Within months of field investigation, Gary identified a striking similarity to Lethal Yellowing in the Caribbean (McCoy et al., 1980; Bahder et al., UF/IFAS).
And that is when he coined the new, accurate, and now globally adopted name:
LETHAL BRONZING.
The name captured what the disease really is — LETHAL, and marked by a distinct BRONZE crown collapse. Today, every university, agency, and arborist uses the name Gary originated.
Click Here To See How This Lethal Bronzing Disease Was Traced To It's Origins By Gary Kennemer
WHAT LETHAL BRONZING REALLY IS, AND WHY IT’S SO DANGEROUS
Lethal Bronzing is caused by a phytoplasma, a bacteria-like organism that lives inside a palm’s vascular system. It is closely related to the phytoplasma responsible for Lethal Yellowing in Jamaica and the Caribbean (classified as 16SrIV-A), while Lethal Bronzing corresponds to the closely related 16SrIV-D subgroup (Bahder et al., 2018; UF/IFAS PP-163).
To homeowners, the science boils down to this:
It behaves like Lethal Yellowing, but the palms collapse in a copper-bronze color instead of yellow.
Research from UF/IFAS, TAMU AgriLife, and Texas Department of Agriculture confirms that the disease is:
- Vector-borne (spread by leafhoppers)
- Systemic (moving upward inside the vascular tissue)
- Not soil-borne
- Capable of infecting many species, not just Phoenix palms
This is why relying on the old name “TPPD” was so dangerous. Homeowners outside of Phoenix-dominated landscapes did not realize their palms were at risk — until they started dying.
Click Here To See How This Lethal Bronzing Disease Was Traced To It's Origins By Gary Kennemer
HOW IT MAY HAVE ARRIVED IN TEXAS: HURRICANES, CROSS-BORDER MOVEMENT & REAL-WORLD EVIDENCE
The disease first appeared in the Lower Rio Grande Valley in the late 1970s and was scientifically described around 1980 as a lethal decline of Phoenix palms (McCoy et al., 1980). The big mystery was how a phytoplasma so similar to Lethal Yellowing suddenly showed up in Texas.
Gary’s investigation, spanning Jamaica, the Yucatán Peninsula, Central America, and South America, revealed two highly plausible routes of introduction:
1. HURRICANE-DRIVEN VECTOR MOVEMENT
One of the strongest matches in timing and storm track is HURRICANE ALLEN (1980) — a Category 5 monster that:
- Passed through the Caribbean and Yucatán Channel
- Carried winds capable of transporting tiny insect vectors
- Made landfall near Brownsville, Texas — the very region where the disease was first documented
Given the known spread patterns of leafhopper species in Lethal Yellowing–affected regions, Gary’s storm-vector theory aligns strongly with what entomologists have proposed for similar phytoplasma diseases (McCoy et al., Bahder et al., UF/IFAS).
2. AGRICULTURAL / FREIGHT MOVEMENT FROM MEXICO & CENTRAL AMERICA
Leafhoppers easily hitchhike on:
- Produce crates
- Pallets
- Fruit boxes
- Freight trailers
- Nursery imports
With constant vehicle movement across the Texas border, this route is equally possible.
Gary’s conclusion — supported by storm history and known vector behavior — is that multiple pathways likely contributed to the first introduction of the phytoplasma into Texas.
Click Here To See How This Lethal Bronzing Disease Was Traced To It's Origins By Gary Kennemer
THE NAME CHANGE THAT PROTECTED TEXAS & FLORIDA: GARY’S IMPACT AND OUR MISSION
For decades, universities and agencies referred to the disease as date palm lethal decline or Texas Phoenix Palm Decline (TPPD). This narrow name gave homeowners (and even city managers) a false sense of security. They assumed:
- Only Phoenix palms were at risk
- Only Texas was affected
- The issue wasn’t serious outside a few pockets
But Gary Kennemer knew from the beginning that this was wrong.
He spent years communicating with Texas A&M AgriLife, Texas Department of Agriculture, USDA/APHIS, UF/IFAS researchers, and regional palm specialists — continually using the more accurate name LETHAL BRONZING. Over time, others started adopting the terminology Gary had been championing long before official publications used it.
Today, the name Lethal Bronzing Disease is standard across the United States, and yet no one else has ever claimed credit for originating the term. The industry now recognizes the disease by the name Gary created — a name that finally communicates the severity and appearance of the pathogen.
As native Texans with palm farms in Houston and Galveston, Palm Professionals has lived through the devastation firsthand. Our livelihoods depend on healthy palms, and it’s why we share so much information with the community. The more people who understand these risks, the more palms we can save — and the more we can protect our Gulf Coast landscapes before they disappear forever.
Click Here To See How This Lethal Bronzing Disease Was Traced To It's Origins By Gary Kennemer
Schedule a Property Visit & Protect Your Palms Today
PROTECT YOUR PALMS WITH THE TEAM THAT DISCOVERED THE TRUTH
You won’t find another company in Texas—or anywhere in the country—that understands Lethal Bronzing the way we do. Our consulting, diagnostics, and treatment programs were pioneered by Gary Kennemer, the palm specialist who identified the disease’s true nature and coined the name “Lethal Bronzing.” His decades of field research, hurricane-path investigations, and early warnings helped shape how the entire industry views this threat today.
But beyond the science, Gary is a native Texan, raised between Galveston and Houston, shaped by the Gulf Coast. He’s a surfer, fisherman, ocean lover, and protector of coastal wildlife, which is why our treatment methods go far beyond traditional arbor-care approaches. We refuse to flood landscapes with chemicals that can run into bays, marshes, and estuaries. Instead, we use groundbreaking, ultra-precise needle-injection systems—developed specifically to avoid drilling palm trunks or contaminating coastal waterways.
Our philosophy is simple:
Protect the palms. Protect the coast. Protect the wildlife. Protect Texas.
Palm Professionals offers:
- Small-needle palm injections (no drilling, no trunk damage)
- Environmentally safe, zero-runoff treatment programs
- Accurate diagnosis and expert consulting
- University-aligned treatment schedules
- Sustainable, long-term palm health plans
- Local field experience + global recognition
When you choose Palm Professionals, you’re working directly with the people who have been on the front lines since the disease first appeared, and who continue to guide homeowners, cities, HOAs, farms, resorts, and coastal communities through the battle against Lethal Bronzing.
Your palms are irreplaceable.
Your landscape is an investment.
Your coastline is worth protecting.
Sustainably protect your palms today.
Call your trusted local experts with global recognition:
Palm Professionals — Houston & Galveston
409-941-PALM