Help with my Palm Tree?

-- images removed, thanks for help --

i have just moved into a new house and now have something in my front garden which resembles a palm tree.

i started removing some dead leaves yesterday which pretty much fell off when i pulled them as most were dead. i did however get carried away and tore some live leaves off the tree and damaged the bark ... will the bark heal itself?

also there are 6 separate trunks all very close together, i was wanting to cut down atleast 2 of them, as it just resembles a big bush at the moment and not a palm tree. i think they need to be spaced out? ... and are all 6 trunks part of the same base/tree?

thanks for any help as i am a complete gardening novice.

 

Hi, I wouldn't worry too much about those leaves you pulled off that were still green.

Its the kind of damage that heals quite easily but best not to do it if you can avoid it.

Its not really a Palm, its Cordyline australis a tree from New Zealand, but it sometimes called a palm.

You could cut out two stems if you want to, but I think you will have problems with them resprouting and it becoming even more of a dense bush.
Personally I would leave it and let it all grow, as it gets taller it will become more open around the base.

 

I think the stems are rather too thick to cut out successfully. I think it would spoil the tree and possibly allow disease into the plant?
I also think that it looks quite good as it is

 

thanks for your help and advice