The palm lily fills the room, balcony and bed with an exotic ambience without requiring extensive care. For many a beginner, the yucca paves the way for hobby gardening. Basic questions about plants and care are answered here briefly and concisely.
care tips
One of the likeable character traits of a yucca is the frugal undemanding, because professional care is limited to these factors:
- Water moderately with soft water
- Remove excess water from the planter
- Fertilize every 14 days from April to September
Place the yucca in a sunny to partially shaded location. The tolerable temperature level of non-hardy species and varieties ranges from 12 to 27 degrees Celsius. Special precautions to increase the humidity are not required.
Properly cut yucca
If the palm lily grows too much for you or loses its harmonious silhouette with age, a plucky pruning solves the problem. Cut a yucca in early spring with a sharp, sanitized knife or a saw. The plant willingly drives out of its sleeping eyes.
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Propagating Yucca
A well-established yucca provides the material for further specimens without our intervention. These are kindles that thrive at the base of the tribe. You already have the appearance of a finished yucca. In order for these daughter plants to develop their own root system, proceed as follows:
- If there are at least 5 leaves on the Kindel, cut them off with a knife
- Plant in peat sand or pricking soil and water with room-warm rainwater
- Rooting progresses quickly on the partially shaded, warm window seat
Another method of propagation is to use 20-30 centimeter long stem pieces that are available after pruning. Planted in poor substrate, the cuttings root out of the sleeping eyes. It is important to note that the segments are used in the previous direction of growth.
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How do I plant correctly?
To transplant a yucca in a bed, choose a dry, overcast day in spring or summer. Proceed professionally in these steps:
- The roots all around with the spade cut off
- The diameter corresponds to the growth height
- With the digging fork or lift out the root ball with a spade
- Plant in the prepared, new location exactly as deep as the yucca was previously
- Solidify the soil and water generously
If you transplant a yucca in a pot, it is not necessary to cut off the roots. It is important to note that there should be drainage above the water outlet in the new bucket to prevent waterlogging. A loose, loamy-sandy substrate with a portion of compost and a little perlite creates ideal growth conditions.
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Is yucca poisonous?
Palm lilies do not pose a health risk to humans. For pets, on the other hand, the consumption of parts of the plant proves to be poisonous because it triggers vomiting, diarrhea and cramps.
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Yucca does not bloom
If a palm lily does not bloom in the garden, it is usually simply too young. A number of species take up to 10 years before they present their flowers for the first time. If an older specimen refuses to flower, the site and culture conditions should be put to the test. Pests or a disease also prevent flowering. We generally cannot expect flowering from a room yucca.
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Is the yucca an agave plant?
Although its common name suggests otherwise, a yucca is not a palm tree. In fact, you are looking at an agave plant of the asparagus family.
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The palm lily as a houseplant
The prime example of a palm lily as a houseplant is the Yucca aloifolia. The gem scores with a trunk up to 100 centimeters high and a crown of dark green sword blades. Some varieties have green or red-edged leaves that underline their decorative value. How to properly care for yucca as a houseplant:
- Sunny to semi-shady location
- Water moderately without causing waterlogging
- Fertilize every 2 weeks from April to September
- From mid-November to early March hibernate bright at 12-14 degrees
- Water less and don't fertilize
If the previous planter is no longer sufficient, repot the palm lily at the end of the hibernation. Structurally stable potting soil is suitable as a substrate lava granules or perlite. A drainage of grit or potsherds from the bottom of the pot is essential.
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The blossom of the palm lily
Its bloom takes our breath away when it appears. It can take up to 10 years until then. As a houseplant, it usually does not allow a yucca to elicit an inflorescence. In the bed, on the other hand, from June to September/October, taut, upright panicles with large bell-shaped flowers in white or cream unfold. These care measures have a beneficial effect on the willingness to bloom:
- A sunny, warm position, ideally under the protection of a wall or hedge
- Humus, well-drained substrate, without risk of waterlogging
- Balanced water and nutrient balance
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Propagate the yucca by division
Since the trunk of a yucca has numerous growing points, you can divide it and grow new yuccas from the segments. The sections are at least 20 centimeters long. When cutting off the mother plant, pay attention to the polarity, because the stem pieces are to be planted in the previous direction of growth so that they can root.
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Is the palm lily hardy?
Within the multifaceted genus with more than 50 species, there is an abundance of hardy yuccas to discover. Classics for the garden are:
- Candle palm lily (Yucca gloriosa): hardy to -20 degrees
- Thready palm lily (Yucca filamentosa): hardy to -15 degrees
- Blue palm lily (Yucca rostrata): hardy to - 21 degrees
The palm lilies only develop this frost hardness in the security of the ground. Cultivated in large tubs, winter protection is essential so that the root ball does not freeze.
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