Asparagus (asparagus) family. The homeland of the yucca is North, South, Central America and the Caribbean islands. This evergreen beautiful plant with linear prickly-pointed leaves collected in an ornamental rosette at the end of the trunk is often grown as a houseplant and presents no difficulties in care. Yucca is good for decorating the living room or hall. Growing a large plant takes time, as the yucca is a slow growing plant. From mid-May to the end of September, it can be taken to the balcony, terrace or garden, to an open sunny place (previously prepared for sunlight, first exposed in light shade). Yuccas are good because they are immune to the dry air of rooms, and this, many know, is not unimportant. In Crimea and the Caucasus, yucca winters in open ground (winter hardiness - zones 9-11).
Types of yucca
Yucca aloelista Yucca aloifolia - has a dense rosette of xiphoid leaves, up to 55 centimeters long and about 3-5 cm wide in the middle of the leaf, about 15 cm at the base, with a serrate edge, the tips of the leaves are very pointed. The color of the leaves is dark green with a bluish coating, and the edge of the leaf is lighter. Aloelistic yucca has a pronounced trunk, branches very reluctantly, in nature it grows on average to a height of 3-5 m. Varieties of aloelistic yucca:
- 'Marginata '- with a white border around the edge of the leaf
- 'Tricolor '- with white and yellow stripes across the leaves
- 'Quadricolor '- stripes white, yellow and red on green leaf background
- 'Atkinsii '- a more compact variety, stunted with purple leaves
Yucca giant Yucca gigantea synonym Yucca elephant Yucca elephantipes - similar to the previous species, but much larger, in nature 5-8 m tall. The tips of its leaves are not too sharp, smoothly tapering at the end, about 60-80 cm long, in the middle part the width is about 5-7 cm, at the base 8-9 cm. The leaves are dark green, glossy, without bluish plaque, with a serrate edge. This yucca branches well at the base of the trunk. The inflorescence is long, reaches 80-100 cm, with white flowers. It is the most common type of yucca grown at home. It is sold in almost every flower shop, usually in the form of a rooted thick tree-like handle with several leaf rosettes. The yucca grows slowly, reaching a height of about 1.5 meters in several years. By the way, in the historical homeland, for example, in Guatemala, the giant Yucca is called Palmer, and in Mexico - Palmita. Outwardly, giant yuccas really resemble palm trees, but from a botanical point of view they have nothing to do with them. Giant (elephant) yucca varieties:
- 'Artola Gold '- this variety has a wide cream strip of heterogeneous shade in the center of the leaf, sometimes turning into light green
- 'Silver Star '- a wide light stripe in the center of the sheet - gray-green on the top, white-green on the back
- 'Jewel '- in the middle of the leaf there is a wide gray-green strip, a narrow cream strip can pass along it, the leaves are dark green to the edges
- 'Puck '- leaves light green, no pattern, the most common variety (suppliers from the Netherlands)
How to care for yucca
Temperature
The yucca naturally grows better in full sun in subtropical or temperate areas. At home (indoors) he does not like strong heat, for it the optimal conditions are 24-26 ° C, preferably not higher than 30 ° C, in winter a slightly cooler temperature is about 18-20 ° C, but if there is little light, then even below 16-18 ° C, minimum + 8 ° C. Since in winter it is difficult to find a place for a yucca brighter, cooler and without cold drafts at home, it is important to protect it from the hot air of batteries and organize lighting when it becomes dark in autumn.
Pictured is a flowering garden yucca. At home, yucca does not bloom.Lighting
Yucca loves a bright place, always with some sunlight, grows in full sun in nature. Small plants can be placed on the windowsill of any window. If it is southern or western and the street is not shaded by anything, you may need shading on the hottest sunny days in spring, after an overcast winter. In autumn and winter, there is always little sun. It may not be enough for large yuccas that do not fit on the windowsill. There is no need to put them on the floor near the window, not because it is cold, but because the crown of the leaves will be below the window opening. It is best to put a flower on a table near the window itself so that hot air flows from batteries do not go to the plant during the heating season. If natural light is not enough in winter, it will be noticeable how the crown tends to the window, then you will need additional lighting with fluorescent or LED lamps.
How to water a yucca
Yucca is watered moderately - in the warm season from spring to autumn (when the temperature is not lower than 25 ° C) so often that the soil must dry well between watering. I.e. after only the top layer of the earth has dried, wait 2-4 days (depending on the temperature) before watering. If water flows onto the tray, drain it. In autumn and winter, yucca is watered depending on the temperature: moderately if the room is warm (about 25-26 ° C) and rarely if it is cool (from 24 ° C and below).
With proper watering of the yucca, the earth manages to dry out at least half the height of the pot, or two-thirds. If in winter to keep a plant in a cold place, for example, on an insulated balcony at 15-16 ° C, then watering is needed very rare. In cold weather - it can be in spring (when the heating is turned off) or in autumn (when it is cold, but the heating has not yet been turned on) - the most dangerous time, since the ground dries much longer, the humidity is very high, if watered before the soil dries thoroughly, the roots can rot. Yucca does not tolerate stagnation of water in the ground and long drying - this can lead to rooting and the formation of stem rot.
Overdrying yucca is easier to tolerate than waterlogging. If 3-4 days have passed, and the earth is still not dry, do not expect signs of overflow - loosen the soil, squeeze it from the walls of the pot with a stick. A sure sign that you are watering yucca more often than required - the appearance of mushroom mosquitoes (flies fly off the pot) - their larvae develop only in conditions of constant dampness.
Air humidity
Yucca does not require spraying the leaves, but sometimes you need to arrange a warm shower - wash off the dust. In winter, in a room with central heating, focus on the indicator of relative humidity - if it is below 40% - spray the plant twice a day, if above, spraying is not required.
Yucca transplant
The soil for yucca requires nutrient and porous, with a large number of draining particles, a slightly acidic reaction pH from 5.5 to 6.5.
- First recipe: 2 part of sod earth, 2 part of sheet earth, 1 part of humus and 2 part of small gravel (3-4 mm or zeolite)
- The second recipe: 2 parts of universal store soil, 1 part of fine gravel (3-4 mm), 1 part of well-rotted compost, 1 part of coconut substrate.
Yucca transplants are performed every two years in spring or as needed. Yucca is planted in a large pot or tub, but not because the roots are very powerful, on the contrary, its root system is rather weak compared to the crown, but because the powerful leaf mass and heavy stems make the plant unstable. To prevent the ground in a pot, bucket or tub from souring after watering, you need to pour a high layer of drainage, it can be from 5-7 cm to 1/3 of the height of the container, for stability not from expanded clay, but from broken brick or large river stones. It is worth adding a few pieces of charcoal to the soil mixture.
Fertilizing
From April to August, every two to three weeks, yucca is fed with fertilizers for ornamental and deciduous plants. Top dressing is needed, first of all, for plants planted in purchased soil, since nutrients are quickly consumed from it (after planting in 1.5-2 months). If the soil is composed according to its own recipe (see above), then top dressing may not be needed in the first year after transplantation.
How to care for yucca, forum participants share their experience:
ITALIA: My yucca stands on the floor by the south window. In summer, I water about once a week, fertilize with "Kemira" or fertilizer for palm trees once every 2 weeks. In winter, I water extremely rarely (once every 3-4 weeks) and, of course, I do not feed. Previously, the yucca stood 2 meters from the south window and also grew well. But when I moved it closer to the light, it began to grow much faster and release leaves more often. And one more thing: I used to spray yucca every day, now I don't do it at all. But once every 10 days I bathe in the bathroom. I advise you not to pour and still rearrange the yucca closer to the window (preferably on the windowsill).
Ferret: The frequency of watering plants depends on the volume of the pot. If the yucca sits in a small container (in a purchased pot), it must be watered almost every day. And in large pots they water once a week. After buying, replant necessarily, but the pot is not too large. Feeding after transplantation in 3-4 weeks.
Devi: the main thing in caring for yucca is not to pour. Just forget about frequent watering, even if it seems that the earth is too dry. I focus on the weight of the pot, after watering it is heavy, when the whole earth dries, it becomes significantly lighter. I advise you to plant yucca in a stable clay pot, its roots are weak, and the trunk is heavy. Another secret to success is a lot of sun. My yucca stands on the windowsill of the southwest window, but there is a shade - the glass has a mini curtain made of a thin veil, I hang it from spring to July, in August I clean it. And one more secret - loosen the soil on the surface of the earth, remove the salt deposit, when it accumulates, then the yucca looks well-groomed and healthy.
Yucca breeding
Yucca is propagated in spring, rooting the top of the stem, as well as pieces of trunk (at least 10 cm long). Propagation by seeds and offspring is possible. For rooting, you can cut only the small crown and free it from unnecessary leaves. The larger the cut part, the more difficult it will be to root. Therefore, only 4-5 leaves should be left on a large handle. Put rooted in boiled water, in which add a piece of charcoal. Change water every 2-3 days. And it is important that the stalk is rooted in warmth at 24-25 & deg; C.
You can put the yucca on the floor only in a very bright place.For the reproduction of yucca by offspring (they are not formed in every plant): a daughter rosette is cut off from the main trunk with a sharp knife, and the cut point on the trunk is sprinkled with sulfur, covered with garden var or crushed coal. The severed rosette is rooted in moist vermiculite, and after rooting it is planted in a pot with earth, into which pieces of birch coal are added. It is advisable to cut daughter rosettes for breeding in spring or summer, since at other times of the year they will not take root or will take a very long time to take root, in addition, this can damage the mother plant.
When breeding yuccas with seeds, it is important that they are fresh. Seeds are soaked for a day in warm water, then sown in a mixture of light leaf earth and peat. The plate is covered with glass or a bag and put in a warm place, ventilated twice a day. Usually the seeds germinate within a month.
Yucca, frequently asked questions
Yucca diseases
Brown spots on yucca leaves have several causes:
- fungal infection from waterlogging (and/or hypothermia) of the roots, most often not due to one-time dampness, but from constant seemingly insignificant slightly more watering
- poor drying of the soil, hypoxia of part of the roots, if the ground is too sticky in places and does not let air through (remember that there should be a lot of drainage in the soil)
- inappropriate acidity - too acidic soil, or increased alkalinity does not allow yucca to absorb some nutrients, hence the spots
Control measures. Remove affected leaves, spray and water the plant with fungicide (e.g. Previcourt Energy, Fitosporin), adjust the watering and stop spraying. Move the plant to a more lit place.
Stem rot - a disease caused by fungi or bacterioses develops rapidly. Characteristic symptoms are softening of the yucca stem, the leaves are pale, soft, gradually hanging. Sometimes the rotten part of the stem is imperceptible, found only during transplantation - the trunk near the base cracks in the hand, inside the cavity, often with putrid contents. If the case is neglected - the leaves hang limply, in the bases of the yellows, as a rule, the whole plant dies. Stem rot in yucca is always caused by waterlogging of the soil, excessive watering. In some cases - hypothermia of raw land (when delivering a plant from a store home during the cold season).
Rot prevention. When transplanting, add loosening elements to the soil (zeolite, coarse river sand, vermiculite, fine expanded clay, coconut chips). Periodically loosen the soil in the pot with a stick. Water the yucca only after the top layer of soil is dry. When spraying, washing leaves under the shower, do not allow water to drain into the substrate. If the plant stands on a cold windowsill, concrete floor, remember that the ground temperature is 2-3 ° C lower than the ambient air, which means that watering should be reduced, and the pot should be placed on a wooden or cork stand if possible.
Yucca has a soft trunk, what to do?
- If the leaves have not yet hung completely, have not turned too yellow and have not turned black, you need to try to save the plant by removing all the affected tissues (if only one trunk has rotted, cut it off).
- Shake the plant out of the pot, soak in fungicide (fundazole, maxim, etc.), remove all rotten roots, then plant in fresh dry earth. Do not water for several days.
- If there is only one trunk - cut off the top of the head, put it in a warm place (not lower than 24-25 ° C) for rooting, and throw out the bottom of the plant and the ground, rinse the pot and scald it thoroughly with boiling water .
- If the yucca has blackened leaves (became dirty gray) and the trunk has softened greatly, you can throw it out with the soil.
Yucca leaves curl up with a tube - the result of strong drying of the earth, or very hot dry air, this often happens when the yucca stands next to the battery and the flow of hot air gets on the leaves.
Yucca leaves turn yellow at the base (become almost white), the plant stretches up strongly - due to an acute lack of light, usually in autumn and winter. Think about whether there is enough light - this often happens when the plant is on the floor, and not at the level of the window, or far away in the room. If the leaves brighten at the base, and at the same time look somewhat sluggish, or even droop, most likely, the plant was flooded (see stem rot).
Rejuvenation of the yucca
The yucca lost its decorativeness, stretched out a lot (long trunk, leaves only on the crown), or the leaves were damaged (the cat was scratched, broken), it can be rejuvenated. To do this, in the spring (since February), it is enough to cut off all the elongated shoots to the height you need. Even if you have to cut off the entire crown - it's okay, with proper care (enough light, heat and limited watering), the yucca will restore the previous scope of the crown in 2 years, but at the same time it will be "shorter."
How to cut the yucca correctly: if there is only one trunk, cut at any height you consider necessary. If the yucca grows in two or three trunks, cut them at different heights of about 10-15 cm one above the other. After cardinal pruning, hemp trunks must be disinfected: charcoal, ground cinnamon or sulfur powder (from a windshield). If it is light enough, then in a week new shoots (bundles of leaves) will begin to grow along the edges of the stumps. If two trunks are cut at the same level, then 2-4 new tops will squeeze each other and their crowns will grow lopsided. If cut at different heights, you will get a multi-level crown and leaves from different trunks will not interfere with each other. On the window, the yucca should be placed so that the bottom crown is closer to the light source.
- When pruning yucca, you need to take into account the fact that the plant is deprived of the crown - leaves that waste energy and evaporate moisture. This means that after pruning, you need to postpone feeding and reduce watering, take up the watering can only when the soil has definitely dried out.
- If you have an old yucca, then a month after pruning the crown, when new kidneys wake up and new leaves begin to appear, you can transplant, and if the root is very overgrown, cut off part of the roots around the perimeter of the root coma, then transplant the yucca into a smaller container.
How to prune the roots of a yucca: get the plant out of the pot, slightly dust off the ground. Anything that does not dust off and leave it, then use scissors or a knife to cut off the thickest roots, leaving the root system of the desired size. At the same time, try to reduce it in the total mass by no more than 2 times. It is important that most of the roots in the very middle of the coma at the base of the trunk remain completely intact. After that, the yucca can be planted in a new pot, smaller in diameter, with good drainage, covered with earth and put in a shaded place. Do not water for 5 days, if dry air, you can only spray several times a day.
Such measures are necessary if the yucca has grown a lot, it does not have enough sun at the window, or it begins to take up too much space, and it is impossible to re-root the stalk.