Tuesday, March 26, 2019

Sammy got a haircut

Clipping the lower leaves on Sammy, our tallest Yucca Rostrata, is a job I do not enjoy but I finally tackled. I think I managed to avoid doing it last year, so once I got in there I was surprised at the thick coat of brown leaves hugging the trunk. Here's the before...

And an after. It's always surprising when another foot or two of trunk is revealed.

Once the growing season gets underway the older leaves will be pushed downward and hide the upper trunk once again, but for now Sammy stands tall.

Weather Diary, March 25: Hi 54, Low 41/ Precip .33"

All material © 2009-2019 by Loree Bohl for danger garden. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude.

24 comments:

  1. Still too wet to do any real work in my garden, so I am actually envious of you being able to get out there and do garden chores.

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    1. It's only the end of March and I already feel behind...

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  2. This is the kind of job that I should think would require donning chain mail, so I'm not surprised you put it off. Do you have any tricks or tips to doing it? Do you tie any of the leaves back to get them out of the way? I'd be terrified of being poked in the eye (literally).

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    1. No tying. I find the place where I want to stop cutting and use my left arm to bend the leaves up starting at that point. Then just start snipping. It's definitely a work out.

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  3. Hi Loree, it looks great! I am about due to undertake this task. When you get to the leaves that are higher up the trunk, are you removing "green" leaves, or do you restrict yourself to those that are lax and dried against the trunk?

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    1. Thanks! I remove some green leaves, because their tips have started to die back and they're detracting from the overall look of the plant. Since I'm in there working I figure I might as well be thorough.

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  4. Some posts ago, I seem to remember comparison photos of Yucca Rostrata, smooth and bearded, and although I prefer the clean shaven look, there is something to be said for keeping your eye balls intact. Sammy looks tall and handsome and rather happy.

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    1. Good memory, yes there's a garden in my neighborhood with the trunks left "as is". I never felt my eyes were in danger. Working at the base of the leaves the poky end was plenty far away.

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  5. That's why so many leave them to get shaggy I guess.
    Technically not a "haircut", as you didn't take anything off the top. I won't guess what it should be called...

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    1. Well, in all my years of getting a haircut I've never had anything taken off the top, just the ends...

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  6. Easy to see why that's not a job you look forward to, but what a nice difference!

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  7. Just a little bit off the sides...Sammy looks good with his new haircut. Would that be considered a mullet?

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    1. I took a photo during the mullet phase, when I was about a third of the way through. Definitely "business in the front, party in the back"...if I had your sense of humor I would have thought to use it.

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  8. It looks great. I am firmly in thr removing the skirt camp and do the same to mine each spring. I find Tin snips work reaaly well on yucca leaves saves a lot of effort.

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    1. I have some floral snips from Corona that I use, they work well.

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  9. I can't decide if I want to do this or leave my Y. rostrata shaggy. It's finally tall enough to warrant trimming, so I better decide, because if I am going to do it, it's time! Do you actually have to cut, or do the dead leaves pull off (she asks, hopefully)?

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    1. Unfortunately there is no pulling. You have to cut, and with sharp blades too.

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  10. Sammy looks good! As I trimmed just a few leaves of a small 'Blue Boy' yesterday and weeds around a Y, gloriosa a couple of days ago, I can appreciate the challenges this haircut must have posed. Last week I finally found a source for my very own Yucca rostrata with a price tag that didn't make me choke. My new addition will arrive in a 4-inch pot the week after next. Of course, I no longer have any idea where to put it but, as it'll presumably be teeny for quite a long time, a pot will be its immediate home.

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    1. Congratulations! I bet with your heat and a little extra water he'll grow fast.

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  11. Very nice! I've been out raking leaves off the beds and finding little jewels underneath. Saw my first butterfly of the season on Saturday. Isn't spring wonderful?

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    1. We're so lucky that spring comes along just when we need it most.

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  12. Sammy looks really good. Do you trim off the leaves to keep the plant drier, or is it for appearance?

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    1. Just appearance. I think the old leaves do an excellent job of making a waterproof coat around the trunk, it's very dry under there.

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