There are numerous different species of yucca from different areas of Central and Eastern America. Some are more suitable for the garden, others make excellent houseplants. But everyone likes it light, warm and dry.
Which types are particularly suitable for the apartment?
Both the Yucca elephantipes and the candle palm lily (Yucca gloriosa) are ideal as houseplants. The Yucca gloriosa grows slowly and only forms a trunk with increasing age. It has long, sword-shaped leaves that are gray to blue-green in color. Since it is hardy, it is also suitable as a garden plant.
The Yucca elephantipes owes its name to its trunk, which is thickened at the lower end. It is reminiscent of an elephant's foot. The German name of this plant is "giant palm lily" because it grows up to 10 meters high in its Mexican homeland. Several trunks grow from the thickened base.
The Yucca elephantipes likes to spend the summer outdoors, for example on the balcony or terrace. But when the temperature falls below 15 °C, it will gladly move back into your living room because it is not hardy. Yuccas form beautiful flowers, but unfortunately not when kept as a houseplant.
The most famous palm lily
The best-known palm lily for indoor use is probably the yucca aloifolia, also incorrectly called the yucca palm. Only the appearance of the leaves connects the yucca with the palm trees, because botanically they are agave plants from the asparagus family. The Yucca aloifolia has an even, relatively thick trunk. If the plant has grown too large, it can be divided into several pieces.
The Yucca aloifolia can also stand outside in summer. They come in different subspecies with differently colored and striped leaves. For example, the 'Marginata' variety has dark green leaves with a yellow edge, and the 'Quadricolor' variety has vertical stripes of green, yellow, white and red.
Tips for palm lilies in the apartment:
- bright warm location
- pour little
- Avoid waterlogging
- choose a sufficiently large plant pot
- in summer also suitable as terrace or balcony decoration
tips and tricks
The varieties giant palm lily and the so-called yucca palm are particularly suitable as houseplants.