Question

yucca tree   QUESTION: I bought a yucca tree in upstate NY,  2 yrs ago in the summer. It did well for the first 6 months or so and as winter started coming I brought it indoors. It almost completly dies on me as it was receiving very little light from lack of windows in my studio apartment. When summer came around again I added more soil to it (miracle grow) put it out side and kept in direct sun on sunny days and on my porch when it rained. Watching carefully that its water was minimal and sunlight plentyful. The tree came back remarkably. This past winter I brought it indoors and kept it under a light directly above it and again watched its water intake it continued to do well. I recently made aroad trip to relocate down to southern texas of course bringi ng my baby with me. I have had my yucca tree out side on warm days and nights and have brought it on the patio during rain and inside when its cold.
My tree has been develping brown tips on certain growth. The new growths start to hunch over aftera while and some old growths are even splitting down the center and turning brown. I'm pretty sure its not scale as it does not flake off and it looks more like its burning in certain areas. Its in a 20 inch pot and this is the same pot it has always been in. Its growing foliage like crazy but I'm just stuck. Can you please help me make my baby healthy again????

ANSWER: Hi Michelle,

The Yucca in the photo you posted looks fine, but I assume that is not recent. Your description of the symptoms are a bit vague and hard to visualize and analyze. However, I can make a few observations.

If new growth is weak, stunted, discolored or damaged, then that means there is a root problem. Usually it is root rot from soil that is not allowed to dry out at least a quarter of the way down into the pot. Lack of drainage holes will also cause root rot.

Plants do not like change. In nature, they put down roots and stay in one place. Your Yucca would be better off if you could find a suitable location for it and leave it there. If local temps in winter are too cold for your Yucca (below 40 degrees), then you should keep it indoors in a sunny window year round or move it outside to light shade in the summer. Outdoor light can be 100 time more intense than indoor light, so moving it from one to the other is too stressful. Moving a plant also changes it water requirements, making it hard to know when to water.

If you can post a more recent photo or better describe the symptoms that concern you, I would be happy to follow-up.

I have written an article on Yucca cane care that I will email for free to you (or anyone else) who sends a request to me at [email protected].

Please let me know if any of this is unclear or if you have any additional questions.

If this information has been helpful, please click the Rate Volunteer bar below and enter a rating and nomination for me. I am a volunteer on this site so Ratings are the only compensation I receive for answering plant questions.

Need more information? Visit my website at:
A link to PlantCareExperts.com

or email me at [email protected] or call me at 917-887-8601 (EST)
 
Regards,
Will Creed, Interior Landscaper
Horticultural Help, NYC

Visit my website at: A link to PlantCareExperts.com



---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hello and salutations. Thank you so much for your responce. The picture I posted for you with my question was taken the same day as I e mailed the question to you. I guess my biggest concern is that I know the floiake is supposed to stand errect, and atleast half of the foliage is kind of bent over. Furthermore, some of it is developing brown on the tips and some others are cracking down the center. I would love to receive the yucca care information you were speaking of as this would be a tremendous help. Thank you so much again for your time and what you do. I am sending this e mail to you and then I am also responding in the "thank the volunteer section as well. If there is any other info I can provide for you to help with the answer to this question please let me know.

Thank you and sincerely,
Michelle and her yucca tree

Answer
Hi Michelle,

Thank you for the top ratings and nomination. It is much appreciated!

Rigid, upright leaves on a Yucca occur only when the plant is grown under ideal light conditions with direct outdoor sunlight year round. Whenever Yuccas are moved indoors, new leaves become thinner and softer and more arching than upright. This is perfectly normal.

Likewise, a small amount of leaf tip browning is inevitable for any plant with sharp, pointed leaves. Leaf cracking is due to physical damage caused by wind or moving the plant. I do not see enough leaf tipping or cracking in the photo to believe it is anything unusual. Many people would be very happy to have a Yucca that looks as healthy as yours!

I do not have access to your email address through this website. So for me to send you my Yucca article, you will have to email your request to me at [email protected] so I have a return email address to use.

Please let me know if any of this is unclear or if you have any additional questions.

If this information has been helpful, please click the Rate Volunteer bar below and enter a rating and nomination for me. I am a volunteer on this site so Ratings are the only compensation I receive for answering plant questions.

Need more information? Visit my website at:
A link to PlantCareExperts.com

or email me at [email protected] or call me at 917-887-8601 (EST)
 
Regards,
Will Creed, Interior Landscaper
Horticultural Help, NYC

Visit my website at: A link to PlantCareExperts.com