By: Scott Sutton.

Sep 14, CLAY THOMPSON: Palm trees tend to bend, not fall, in the wind"Palm trees have a pretty big root structure, believe it or not, even some of the Estimated Reading Time: 2 mins. Oct 09, Rambling Roots. First of all, most palm trees have a large number of short roots spread across the upper levels of the soil, which work to secure a large amount of soil around the root ball. As Estimated Reading Time: 3 mins. Sep 12," [Its] lack of conventional structure is what gives the palm its flexibility and makes it supremely adapted to the gentle island breezes that periodically coalesce into ruthless hurricanes," Estimated Reading Time: 3 mins.

In a bad storm, the canopy can act as a sail and pull the poor thing over; branches can easily be shorn off, as well as the detachment of the whole canopy.

Jul 16, A palm grows straight up, gaining its height on overlapping leaf bases. Hence, it doesn’t have branches to catch the wind. A big, branchy Norfolk Island pine, on the other hand, would just as soon blow over as look at you. There are many factors contributing to a palm's ability to withstand wind, including the tree's age, whether it is native or exotic, the condition of the soil, the duration of the storm and whether the tree grows on its own or among other trees.