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Ponytail Palm Care Guide: How to Grow This Easy, Long-Lived Houseplant

Poneytail palm indoors by a window. The Beaucarnea Recurvata, also known as Ponytail Palm, or Nolina is a houseplant with a swollen thick brown stem and the long narrow curly, green leaves flow up from this base.
Image Credit:
Renata.Ka/Shutterstock
Botanical Name
Beaucarnea recurvata
Sun Exposure
Full Sun
Partial Sun
Soil pH
Neutral
Flower Color
White
Yellow
Plant Type
Houseplants
Written By: Catherine Boeckmann Executive Digital Editor and Master Gardener

Ponytail palms, or elephant foot palms, are unique-looking, long-lived indoor plants that thrive on benign neglect. They are straightforward to grow—provided that you don’t overwater them! Here’s how to grow and care for a ponytail palm in your home.

About Ponytail Palms

Despite its name and palm-like appearance, the ponytail palm is not a true palm. In fact, it is more closely related to desert plants in the Agave and Yucca genera (such as Joshua trees).

The typical ponytail palm consists of a large, domed stump, which tapers off into a thinner stem. As the plant ages, one or more rosettes of long, green, leathery leaves develop from the top of the stem. Indoors, the leaves can reach up to 3 feet long, but outdoors, they may be double that length.

In its native environment of eastern Mexico, the plant can reach up to 30 feet in height. However, ponytail palms grown in gardens as landscape plants typically don’t reach more than 10 feet tall. 

Kept indoors, they are rarely taller than 4 feet. However, as Susan Mahr of the University of Wisconsin-Madison explains, “In containers, ponytail palms will grow slower than if in the ground, and the plants will remain small if kept in a small pot. They can go for many years before needing to be repotted. Moving your ponytail palm to a larger pot will give it room to grow in both height and girth. They can be very long-lived and can easily outlive their owners. However, older plants may be difficult to manage because of sheer size and weight if not kept on the smaller size.”

Care of this plant is simple; the most common difficulty is adapting your watering habits to its needs.

Planting

Choosing a Growing Medium and a Pot

  • Use a fast-draining potting mix, such as one for cactuses and succulents. If you already have potting mix, sand, and perlite on hand, you can create your own desert mixture using equal amounts of each
  • Select a pot with a hole in the bottom so that excess water can be drained off. Ponytail palms do not like to sit in moisture for long.
  • Use a clay pot if possible; the porous material will absorb some of the water, drying out the growing medium more quickly (a good thing for cactuses and succulents).

Growing

How to Care for Ponytail Palms

  • Ponytail palms prefer bright indirect light.
  • Keep growing medium fairly dry. Water from spring through fall, allowing the top inch or two to dry out completely before rewatering. During the winter, water only occasionally.
  • To water, soak the potting mix and allow the excess water to drain through the bottom of the pot into a dish. Let the pot sit in the dish for several minutes, then dump out any remaining water in the dish.
  • Fertilize in the spring with a cactus/succulent fertilizer and bring into a brighter room for the summer months.
  • Average room temperature is acceptable for most of the year, but to replicate the natural dormancy cycle, keep the plant slightly cooler in the winter (50°–55°F / 10°–13°C).
  • Don’t let the plant sit too close to cold windows at night during winter, as freezing temperatures can severely damage it.

Repotting a Ponytail Palm

  • Ponytail palms will remain small if kept in a small pot. They can go for many years before needing to be repotted. Repotting every other year at the most is all a ponytail palm needs.
  • Moving the plant to a larger pot will allow it to grow in height and girth. However, older plants may become challenging to manage due to their sheer size and weight if they are not kept at a smaller size.
  • When selecting a new pot, pick one large enough to leave about an inch or so of space between the ponytail palm’s trunk and the pot’s rim.
  • Note: Use caution when handling a ponytail palm, as its leaves have tiny serrated edges.

Harvesting

Propagation

  • Rarely, a ponytail palm may produce an offset—a tiny baby plant that stems from the base of the adult plant. These can be cut off at the base when they reach at least 4 inches in height and planted in a succulent potting mix. Before planting, allow the cut wound to heal, then apply some rooting hormone (available online and in nurseries) to encourage the offset to root. 

Pests and Problems

  • Overwatering can result in stem rot. If you withhold watering, the plant may be able to internally remedy the problem. Signs of stem rot include yellowing leaves and a caudex (the plant’s base and stem) that is soft or squishy.
  • Spider mites and scale insects may find their way to the leaves, but can be dealt with by rubbing a cloth of dish soap and water on the stems. Spider mites are evidenced by the presence of spider-like webbing on the plant.
  • Brown tips on leaves can be a sign of overfertilizing or underwatering, so adjust your practices appropriately. They can also indicate that the plant is getting too much direct light and not enough water.

Wit and Wisdom

  • The plant’s unusual shape and coloration have granted it another strange nickname—elephant’s foot palm.
  • Are ponytail palms poisonous to cats? While the leaves of a ponytail palm are not toxic to feline (or canine) companions, their foliage does have abrasive edges that could irritate a pet’s mouth, so we suggest keeping the plant out of reach. 

Houseplant Guides

About The Author

Catherine Boeckmann

Catherine Boeckmann

Executive Digital Editor and Master Gardener

Catherine Boeckmann loves nature, stargazing, and gardening so it’s not surprising that she and The Old Farmer’s Almanac found each other. She leads digital content for the Almanac website, and is also a certified master gardener in the state of Indiana.

Read more from Catherine Boeckmann

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Comments

<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Tue, 01/15/2019 - 17:01

Ponytail palms are non-toxic, so your cat will be fine if he ends up chewing on a few leaves. However, it would be best if he didn't!

 <span>Barbara Grobicki</span> Wed, 11/21/2018 - 11:20
I have a ponytail that has been in our family for years, probably close to 40. It had not been repotted in years (if ever). We keep it inside in the winter and then put it outside in the summer. Sadly it grew too tall this summer to come back inside! The bulb has had no space in that pot for years so not sure what happened to make it grow so much. What is the true low temp that will kill it? If we plant it in the ground is that better than a pot? We currently stuffed it in at an angle inside but that’s not practical. I’m assuming it can’t be trimmed to cut off the top. Is this plant interesting enough that a botanical garden would want it?
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Mon, 11/26/2018 - 15:42

Ponytail palms come from hot, arid climates, so they will only truly thrive outdoors in areas that have similar conditions (USDA Zone 9 and warmer). They can survive brief cold snaps that dip into the 30s, but they don't tolerate freezes well and likely won't be happy if kept below 40°F for long. They are also prone to rotting from too much water, so if your winters are wet or snowy, the plant could easily get too wet and rot. Additionally, depending on where you are located, it may be too late in the season to plant it outdoors, as the shock of going from indoor temps to cold outdoor temps could damage it.

Young ponytail palms can be cut back to encourage branching, but I wouldn't recommend trying that on one as large and as old as yours.

Though these plants aren't particularly rare, a large specimen would likely be of interest to a botanical garden or university!

 <span>Peter Gurtenstein</span> Sat, 09/15/2018 - 10:36
I'm in Saint Pete Beach, FL and have a huge ponytail palm in the ground in front of my home. We bought the house five yrs ago and the tree was already here. It's a double trunk and everyone says it is the biggest ponytail they have ever seen. Approx 25' around at the base and 15-20' tall. Recently I noticed a larger than usual dropping of dead leaves and now the new leaves are yellowing much too quickly. One or two leaf clusters have actually caved in. We've had above average rainfall this year but drainage is good and the Royal Palm and Queen Sago in the same area are doing fine. I suspect it might be too wet . Any thoughts on what might be causing the problem and what to do about it? Thanks for your input.
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Mon, 09/17/2018 - 16:46

Boy, that's a big one alright! 

It sounds like your analysis could be correct: the plant is likely getting too much water and its roots may be rotting. Unfortunately, with a plant so huge, there's not a whole lot that you can do, aside from hoping for drier weather.

To confirm your theory, take a look around the base of the plant, poking gently with your foot to see if you can find any obvious soft spots. These would be a sign of rot and too much water in the soil. If you can't see anything aboveground, gently dig down (no deeper than 1ft) around the base of the plant in a few different spots to see if you can find any rot belowground. If you can't find any signs of rot there either, the problem is probably deep within the roots of the plant. 

There's not much you can do for the plant at this point, unfortunately, but ponytail palms are fairly hardy. If it gets a chance to dry out, the plant should recover!

 <span>Rhonda Maner</span> Mon, 09/10/2018 - 20:21
Hello, my ponytail plant is about 8 years old, I have repotted once. It's about 4 ft tall and has new stems coming from the top most of the time. The older leaves are bent and come all the way to the floor. Can I trim those leaves to give it a more upward poofy look on top? They do not have brown tips, they just drag the ground and are droopy. Thanks.
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Wed, 09/12/2018 - 15:03

Yes, you can trim the lower leaves back! As long as you let the new growth grow unimpeded, the plant will be fine.

 <span>Dana Downey</span> Mon, 09/10/2018 - 12:46
I have had my pony tail for ~ 44 years. It stands ~ 6.6' high. It has been in a 22" diameter X 16" tall pot for ~ 10 years. The bulb of the plant is ~ 17" in diameter (~ 2.5" from the edge of its pot). The tips of the lower palms have begun turning yellow, then brown and traveling up the palm until I have to remove them. The plant is still putting new palms out of the top of the plant. I water it ~ once every 2 weeks with about 1 qt of water. What can I do to stop the lower palms from dying? Does it need to be re-potted (would take a crane and a team to do so!)? If so, how much larger pot does it need? If not re-potted, how do I adjust its water (have watered it the same since 1974!)? This is an heirloom plant my mother gave me in 1974; it has been "babysat" by family as I was stationed overseas. My daughter has her heart set on inheriting it some day....
<span>Karen Breen</span> Fri, 10/26/2018 - 09:04
My Pony Tail Palm is 42 year old and thriving. I just re-potted it and brought it in for the winter. It has five babies on it also. To help it from drying out while inside, I mist the top of it and sometime down the trunk to keep it supple. Also, I don't pull off the dried palms when inside the house as that causes the top to dry out faster. Good luck!
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Wed, 09/12/2018 - 14:59

Wow! That's quite an old tree! Congrats on keeping it happy for so long.

Lower leaves turning brown is not usually a cause for concern—especially if the plant is continually putting out new leaves—as that's just part of the natural growth cycle of the plant: grow new leaves, drop old ones. But, if this is the first time you're seeing it happen after having the plant for so long, there may be outside factors in play.

Have you changed your source of water in the past year or so? Desert plants can be especially sensitive to chemicals in tap water (such as fluoride), which can cause the tips of leaves to turn yellow and brown. Try watering with distilled or spring water for the next few months and see if that solves the issue. 

Browning tips may also be caused by too much intense sunlight. But again, if the plant is still regularly putting out new growth, it seems like it's happy where it is.

The pot size is likely not an issue, as ponytail palms don't mind being constricted. Moving it to a larger pot will only encourage it to get even bigger (and more unmanageable)! The amount of water is also not likely a problem, as long as you are letting the soil dry out properly between waterings.