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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

<span>Lukasik</span> Thu, 03/31/2016 - 12:39
I bought my plant last month. Its about 18" tall. The stems are bent down and so is the new growth and they are about 2' long. It was damp when I got it and I watered it when it felt dry. But the big issue is the bulb. It is crackled and I got it that way. Do I spray it with water every day? I just read to spray the leaves.
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Fri, 04/01/2016 - 15:41

Hi, Lukasik: The general impression we get is that this ponytail is too wet. Don't spray anything. Remember, ponytail palms are a succulent, so they can deal with dry. Your bulb should be OK. Wait until the soil feels dry (not damp), wait a day, then water. Repeat. Thanks for asking!

 <span>Sarah</span> Sun, 03/20/2016 - 13:59
Hi. I have had a ponytail for about 15 years that has been growing slowly but Shirley. I live in WI so I keep it in front of a southern facing window all year. Well we adopted a kitten last year and she would jump in the pot and tap at the white "sheaths" of the old leaves until they'd fall off. We moved the plant so she couldn't get at it. Well fast forward a few months and I get home from work and she managed to get at it and pulled every green leaf off. Now it's slowly withering and drying down the stem. Can I cut the stem where it looks firm yet to try to spark new growth? Do I wax to seal the cut? Am I too late?
<span>Laurie</span> Sun, 03/13/2016 - 22:09
My ponytail plant is at home in Central Florida. It was transplanted about 4 years ago into a special made raised bed planter. It was moved with a fork lift and suffered a few knicks and scrapes, nothing too major. It is at least 30 years old and 20 feet tall or so. About 6 months ago it starting oozing white foam and had a horrible odor coming from it. I believe it has slime flux as well and wonder is there any treatment for it. I have asked some of the local nursery and pest control companies and I inquired at our local extension office and all have said that they don't have treatment for it. The frons of the plant are still green and appear to be growing, The plant stopped oozing about 2 months ago, but the trunk where the slime has oozed out over the last few months is now hollow sounding when you knock on it. It is a beloved plant and I would hate to loose it. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Wed, 03/16/2016 - 15:34

If your tree has stopped oozing and is in good shape you don't need to worry too much. Make sure to water and keep the palm healthy and it should do fine. The oozing may come back but for now there is nothing else you can do.

 <a rel="nofollow" href="https://google.com/homepage">Judi Stanley</a> Sun, 03/13/2016 - 13:18
Today I repotted my pony. It has 3 shoots that were Thriving, but needed edges cut (some were brown, some were broken/bent, etc. The plant ended up with 2 bare shoots. Will the leaves grow back?? Should I put wax on them? Also, I may have put it in too big of a pot, since I understand they like being root bound? Plz help! It's my favorite plant!!
<span>Ken</span> Sun, 03/13/2016 - 10:03
I have ponytail palm 3&1/2' high, 14" base, approx 20 yrs old. New growth at top is coming out red. This started while the plant was in the garage for temps in low 30es for winter. This is same procedure used previous winters with no problems. It is out on pool deck, Sun all day. It was repotted last spring, did well all summer & fall. Water drainage seems to be good, watered every 2 to 3 weeks as my usual. Any help would be appreciated.
<span>Cece Williams</span> Sat, 03/05/2016 - 00:09
Hello, I received 2 Ponytail Palms in one glass dish with rocks at the bottom and mulch on top. Please help, can it survive this way. It's pretty, but I want these two palms to survive. Thanks.
<span>Lina</span> Fri, 02/19/2016 - 03:01
I need an advise from you, people. I got a ponytail a half a year ago. It was a bit overwatered, infected with mealy bugs and planted too deep into the ground. I replanted it into the cacti soil properly and treated from the bugs. After a while it showed a tiny bit of growth and then nothing. I was thinking it is because of the winter. Been watering it every 3-4 weeks. Now a half a year passed and the top of the trunk started looking as if it is drying out. I decided to take a look at the roots today. I pulled out the plant out of the pot. I've noticed that it has not grown a single root in 6m! The ones that it has looks dry and dead. I cut the very base with knife to see if it is not rotten. It’s firm and white. How do I make it root?? Maybe I need to cut all the old root or what? I really need some smart advise. Thank You!
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Fri, 02/19/2016 - 15:05

Ponytail palms are tough. Don't remove the roots and repot the palm. Place it in a bright spot. Water sparingly and give the plant some fertilizer in March. Be patient and the palm may show some new growth.