Yucca Plant care

rockdrummer

I have a Yucca plant (im pretty sure its this), Have two wood stems in a pot. One about 2 feet high and the other about 4 feet high, the 2 feet one seems to be doing pretty well, but the 4 foot one is not. The leaves have started to droop and also the branch where the leaves are, is very weak, you can bend them very easily not like the smaller one. It is in the sitting room at the window so gets plenty of light during the morning, and I water regularly, i would have though if i over or under watered the smaller one would be affected aswell.

Any ideas or good site on Yucca plants ??

Cheers.

Irish Gardener

Many houses up and down the county have yucca plants.
Yucca is one of those plants which will put up with a lot of neglect.
It is quite drought tolerent, so under watering is usually not the problem.
You say the leaves have started to droop, this can happen with overwatering as well as underwatering.
But you also say the branch where the leaves are, is very weak, you can bend them very easily.
This sounds like stem rot or stem softening due to overwatering.
The compost needs only to be the very slightest moist.
Try taking the plant out of the pot, replace the pot when the excess moisture has dried out.
Watering about once a week is usually sufficent, also remember to feed fortnightly.

rockdrummer

Hey your probably right as the pot is in a tray which has water in it which drained from the pot - I hear this can cause root rot. Just strange that the small one right beside it is doin OK.

Gonna have a look this eve.

Irish Gardener

Thats probably it alright.
A yucca should never be left sitting in water.

As for the younger plant, I don't know.
Such is life I suppose, things often affect adults much more so than children.;)

rockdrummer

Should I remove the leaves aswell !?

Irish Gardener

You may need to cut back to fairly solid wood.
cutting out the soft or pliable wood.
After that give the plant a feed, and feed regularly.
Yuccas often pop new shoots after being cut back.

rockdrummer

Here are pics of the tree !! You can see the smaller one is OK !! Should I cut the leaves off or at the bark just below where it is weakened? Or will they perk up again if I dont water them too much?

Also I had stones covering the clay in the pot, I have takin these out as it may have prevented air getting to the roots and probably added to my overwatering as the soil was not drying out as quick !!

rockdrummer

Sorry for all the posts / questions but new to all of this. What can you feed to these plants? I have plants and trees like the Yucca and I feed them all the same. Is this OK, at the moment I use Baby Bio, is it OK to use plant food on trees?

Irish Gardener

To be honest, the leaves don't look that bad.
After looking at them now, I would just cut back the leaves which are badly brown tipped, these will never green up again.
Then leave it and let nature take its course, if more leaves brown tip badly then remove them.
I would say overwatering was your problem as the compost in the pots looks very dark and wet.

Baby bio is fine to feed the Yucca

rockdrummer

Thanks for all you help, much appreciated !

GreeBo

the smaller one will have shorter roots and it probably not sitting in the water...

rockdrummer

I have left it now for about 3 weeks and is still the same. The stem (marked with black in the picture) is very weak and bendy. I dont know if I should cut them off. Is this a very slow growing tree?

Any advice would be great....

Thanks.

Irish Gardener

If it is just the one stem,then yes Iwould remove it.
But do not cut below the point where the thin stem joins the main thick stem.
Leave an inch or two to allow regrowth above the joint.

"Is this a very slow growing tree?"
It puts on moderate growth, but will be slower due to stressing.

garyh3

CHARACTERISTICS:

Their foliage is sharp and spear like; watch your eyes the leaf edges are even sharper than the point. Don't be deceived.

They are durable plants and can tolerate being dry. Over watering will show as a brown tip with a yellow halo. Under watering is indicated in shriveled stalks (not woody trunk), and solid yellow and brown leaves. These are usually the lower leaves.

These plants can be purchased in a foliage tip or cane form.

This plant requires a lot of attention to keep looking nice.

PRUNING:

If these plants are grown in direct sunlight, they will stay compact and their stalks will be able to support the weight of their foliage. The less light they get, the more the stalks and foliage will stretch to the light source. Sometimes this stretched foliage will break off.

As yuccas age, we have found black splotches appear randomly on the foliage. Where it is possible trim the black parts off or remove the whole leaf altogether. If the whole head becomes unsightly, cut it down to a suitable height, and wait for the new heads to grow - usually three or four new heads will appear. Be careful not to over water now. Less foliage means less water.