Native Plants
Q. Who is Mr. Smarty Plants?
A: There are those who suspect Wildflower Center volunteers are the culpable and capable culprits. Yet, others think staff members play some, albeit small, role. You can torture us with your plant questions, but we will never reveal the Green Guru's secret identity.
Did you know you can access the Native Plant Information Network with your web-enabled smartphone?
Ask Mr. Smarty Plants
Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.
rate this answer
Monday - September 16, 2013
From: Austin, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Watering, Shrubs, Trees
Title: Yucca rostrata needs some help in Austin, TX.
Answered by: Jimmy Mills
QUESTION:
We planted an expensive 5-6 foot Yucca rostrata last fall. It bloomed beautifully in the spring. We installed an irrigation link to water the recently planted areas with succulents, viburnums, spartan cedars, bamboo grass, and perennials while we were on an extended vacation. When we returned the y.rostrata had numerous brown leaves, but I didn't worry until within a few weeks most of the plant leaves had died. I turned off the water source to the plant. There are a very few green leaves left, including one apical cluster, but if a small percentage of the plant survives, is it able to again become a healthy, beautiful specimen? Should we remove it, remove the 90% leaves that are dead, wait and see, or what??? I appreciate your advice.ANSWER:
Mr. Smarty Plants thinks you almost drowned your Yucca plant. How did the other succulents fare?
Yucca rostrata is a synonym for Yucca thompsoniana (Thompson's yucca) which is the name used in our Native Plant Database. I’m including a couple of links about Yucca thompsoniana and yuccas and agaves in general. One of the things to notice in the rteadings is that Yuccas require little water and do not like to have wet roots.
The apical cluster of green leaves of your plant will produce more green leaves if the plant survives. It is normal for the lower leaves of a yucca plant to gradually die in a process termed sequential senescence . The leaves that have died should be removed to help the appearance of the plant as you wait to see what happens. Your yucca may never be the beautiful specimen that you had before, but by using the care tips in the links above, it may survive.
Another approach is to try and propagate new plants from your old plant if it is still alive. This rather crude done video explains this process.
More Watering Questions
Care for non-native 'Glacier Blues' from Charlton MA
March 24, 2012 - Do you have to prune or cut down Glacier Blues in the garden? My plants look brown and wilted.
view the full question and answer
Transplanting a non-native rose from Akron OH
August 30, 2012 - Can I transplant a rose plant that I have in sunny area to an area that will be partially shady?
view the full question and answer
Landscaping plant for Austin
September 01, 2011 - Great site! Have gotten lots of ideas.
We're about to start construction on a fairly major landscaping project: raised beds/privacy screen. We're at the top of a hill in the Hill Country just wes...
view the full question and answer
Defining drip line on trees from Austin
August 08, 2011 - When you say that trees should be watered at the "drip line," do you mean that literally? I assume that the drip line means at the outside edge of the leaves or branches. Does that mean that waterin...
view the full question and answer
Problem with Salvia Mystic Spires in Chesterfield VA
May 30, 2009 - Last August, our local Lowes had these beautiful, unusual blue perennials on the discount rack called "Salvia Mystic Spires". For 50 cents each, they looked terrific, so I bought all they had, about...
view the full question and answer
| Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today. |