The youthful momentum is gone when a yucca palm tree gets out of shape, collides with the ceiling and anxiously gesticulates in all directions with its thin trunks. High time for a bold pruning so that the green vitality returns quickly. Read this tutorial on when and how to properly prune your yucca.

Small cosmetic corrections can be carried out all year round

Table of Contents

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  1. timing and material requirements
  2. topiary
  3. unscrew leaves
  4. Cut off the wilted ones
  5. frequently asked Questions

    6. Best timing and material requirements

    Basically, you can prune your yucca all year round. Spring is the ideal time for pruning. At this stage, the sap pressure is at a low level, so the exotic succulents hardly bleed from the inevitable cuts. With the following combination of prudent choice of date, suitable tools and practical accessories, trimming a palm lily becomes a successful project:

    • The best time is from early April to mid-May
    • Cutting tool for shoots up to 2 cm in diameter: bypass secateurs
    • Shoots up to 3.5 cm: pruning shears with bypass mechanism
    • Shoots and stems with a diameter of 4 cm or more: folding saw (€17.70) or a sharp bread knife
    • Small knife with a straight blade for smoothing cuts
    • rag and alcohol
    • Sturdy gloves
    • Tree wax, (12.96€) charcoal ash or rock flour (14.13€) for wound treatment

    Before you devote yourself to the cutting work, please clean the scissor blades and saw blades carefully with hot water. Then disinfect all cutting edges with spirit or Sagrotan. The best cutting care is doomed to failure if unclean tools are used. Numerous pathogens and pests use scissors, saws and knives as a welcome means of transport into the pathways of yucca palms and other indoor plants.

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    Sleeping eyes guarantee cutting success

    Although its name suggests that the yucca is a palm tree, it is actually an agave plant. This subtle botanical difference has a major impact on cut tolerance. True palms have a single growing point, which prohibits regular pruning. Yuccas, on the other hand, can rely on a whole flock of sleeping eyes. These are dormant buds along the trunk and shoots, which become lively after pruning and sprout vigorously.

    Cut the yucca palm into shape

    If the yucca palm hits its pretty tuft of leaves on the ceiling or gesticulates wildly with thin spidery arms, a topiary solves the problem. Now, at the latest, room gardeners appreciate the good-natured cut tolerance that characterizes the palm-like agave plant. How to Properly Prune a Yucca Palm Tree:

    • Cut back shoots and trunks to the desired length
    • Smooth cuts with the knife blade
    • Dust small wounds with charcoal ash or rock flour
    • Treat larger wounds with tree wax

    Wounds from the size of a 2 euro coin are a case for treatment with tree wax. Apply a thin layer of wound closure to the edges of the wound. Inside, the cut should only be dusted with charcoal ash. In practice, it has been proven that complete sealing impairs wound healing and promotes decay.

    tips

    Yucca palms are often stingy with the growth of side shoots. Occasionally cut back long, unbranched shoots in spring. The pruning causes a sap accumulation under the cut, whereupon several new shoots sprout and the yucca grows bushier.

    Twist out dead leaves

    Hallmarks of a yucca palm are green or cream-white edged sword blades that gather in decorative tufts. The position of a yucca leaf gives a clear indication of its age. Inside a leaf tuft are the youngest leaves with tightly upright growth. The older leaves, up to 100 centimeters long, frame the young foliage and overhang elegantly.

    Over time, the leaves at the bottom of a crown will retract and fall off. This process can take several weeks and detract from the beauty of a yucca. Furthermore, it can happen that a young sword blade dries up prematurely in the center of the forehead. In both cases, scissors, saws or knives remain in the drawer. How to handle dead leaves on a yucca palm tree:

    • Wait until a yucca leaf has completely yellowed and dried up
    • Manually pull the leaves downwards at the outer edge of the crown
    • Grasp the center of the leaves with your fingers and twist out

    The soft texture of yucca leaves belies the fact that the edges of the leaves can be very sharp and the tips of the leaves can be needle-sharp. Please wear protective gloves when removing dead leaves. It is important to note that you are patient with the measure until a leaf has died. In the transition phase, valuable reserve substances are transferred from the leaf to the roots so that new leaves sprout in the upper crown area.

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    Do not trim yucca leaves

    The perfect radiance of opulent yucca crowns is preserved as long as you pull off or twist out whole leaves if necessary. On the other hand, you will struggle with a disfigured appearance for a long time if you shorten overly long yucca leaves. Brown, irreversible streaks form on the cuts as the succulent plant tissue dies. Until the sword blade in question is withdrawn after several years, the brown tip of the blade remains a thorn in your side.

    Cut off faded flowers

    Under ideal conditions, a yucca palm feels encouraged to provide its gardener with a magnificent bloom. In the bright, warm conservatory, the best prospects for the floral spectacle are from the tenth year. The majestic panicles of flowers are reminiscent of oversized lilies of the valley and attract everyone's attention.

    After the end of the summer flowering period, the withered inflorescences become an aesthetic distraction. Since the yucca moth, as the main pollinator, is not native to our regions, there is little chance of the formation of seed heads anyway. Therefore, take a saw or pruning shears and cut off the withered panicle at the base.

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    frequently asked Questions

    Are Yucca Palms Hardy?

    Popular yucca palms for living quarters are not hardy. The picturesque Yucca elephantipes presents its magnificent leaf tufts of impressive sword blades, as long as normal room temperatures are allowed. The same applies to exotic beauties such as the Yucca aloifolia, also known as the gray palm lily. At temperatures below 10 degrees Celsius, most yuccas are threatened in their existence. An exception applies to garden yuccas, such as the sycamore (Yucca filamentosa), which can survive a Central European winter outside, provided it is protected from moisture.

    What to do with the clippings of a yucca palm tree?

    The potential for a new, magnificent yucca palm rests in every shoot. The clippings are therefore perfect for propagation by cuttings. An ideal cutting is 20 to 30 cm long, healthy and leafless. It is important for rooting that you plant a yucca cutting in the right direction. Mark the top end with string or felt-tip pen. Mixing up the polarity will cause a cutting not to take root. On the warm, bright window seat, it takes an average of a month for the first tender shoots to appear.

    My yucca palm forms very long, extremely thin shoots with few leaves. What to do?

    A lack of light causes a yucca palm to form long, thin shoots, which are also known as horny shoots or fear shoots. Proceed in two stages so that the yucca can return to shapely, compact growth. First of all, a change of location should take place in a bright to sunny place. Then cut back all overly long shoots to short stubs.

    Another miniature plant grows at the bottom of my yucca palm. How do I deal with it?

    It is an offshoot, also known as a Kindel. In this way, an older yucca palm tree provides offspring in good time. You should not miss this opportunity and use the Kindel for propagation. Wait until the mini yucca has at least five leaves. Then cut off the offshoot and pot it in a small bucket with potting soil. Keep the substrate constantly slightly moist on a bright window seat that is not in full sun.

    When pruning my yucca palm, I forgot to mark the polarity. Can I no longer use the clippings as cuttings?

    If the original direction of growth of yucca shoots is no longer traceable, you can still use the clippings for propagation. You can do this by planting the cuttings across. Fill a sufficiently large seed pot with lean soil. Place a stem segment on top and press half to two thirds of it into the substrate. Root strands then sprout from the sleeping eyes on the underside. On the opposite side, new shoots sprout from dormant buds beneath the bark.

    The 3 most common cutting mistakes

    The robust pruning tolerance of yucca palms irons out most beginner mistakes. Nevertheless, the following three pruning mistakes have serious consequences that can spoil your enjoyment of your yucca for a long time.

    cutting error damage picture prevention
    cut in summer massive bleeding Cut early April to mid-May
    leaves cut back brown, irreversible lacerations Unscrew or pull off dead leaves
    unclean, blunt cutting tool used Spread of diseases, pests and rot use sharp, disinfected tools

    tips

    Yucca palms are good for many a horticultural surprise. The realization that there are some hardy succulents among more than 50 species causes astonishment among hobby gardeners. A prime example is the sycamore (Yucca filamentosa), which can withstand temperatures of up to -20 degrees Celsius and snow pressure in beds without complaint.

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Trees