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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> Mon, 04/07/2014 - 12:13

You can easily divide the bulbs. Remove them from the pot, brush off as much soil as you can, and then carefully pry them apart. Repot them with a fast draining potting mix and place them in a sunny spot.

 <span>Betty Nicholson</span> Sat, 04/05/2014 - 17:14
i have a triple pony tail for probably thirty years and it is in a corner, by a southern exposure, getting some direct sun but mostly protected by an overhang. well, one of the plants is just about touching the ceiling (leaves not the stalk)-so now what? i have no other place with sunlight, unless it comes out of the beautiful antique planter (found in the garbage) and it really belongs in it. so, is there a way to trim without damage or…. thanks in advance, betty
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Mon, 04/07/2014 - 12:07

Hi Betty,

Just cut the top off at the desired height and use a commercial sealant on the cut if it is big. You should see some new growth in about a month. Replant the top with the leaves after dipping the cut in rooting hormone.

 <span>Martin Lowy</span> Sun, 08/10/2014 - 16:38
I have a somewhat similar issue. My plant is over 30 years old. i have had it since 1982, when it might have been 10 years old. For the last 10 years we have lived in Florida and we have it on our lanai. The plant loves it there. But it has three branches and one of them has become so heavy that it is not able to support itself. Everything is healthy, but it appears I should with cut this limb back or remove it. Which would be better? And if I remove the limb, I would have potentially a new plant that is about three feet tall. Is it usual that such a limb can be planted and survive? Thanks for your help.
<span>Lillian Strozier</span> Tue, 04/01/2014 - 13:48
my pony palm is 5-6 ft tall and on a balcony with sunshine. I discovered it has white mold that is sticky. You have said to correct this to spray with an insecticide/soup spray. What is this and where can you purchase it? I also have several shoots can these be removed and replanted? Thank You, Lillian
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Wed, 04/02/2014 - 15:29

You can buy insecticidal soap sprays at garden centers or other stores that sell gardening products. You can also make your own by mixing 1 to 2 tablespoons liquid soap into a quart of water. Neem oil can also be used for insect pests.

You can cut the shoot from your palm and dip the bottom in rooting hormone. Then plant in a pot with fresh soil and place the pot in a sunny window. Let the soil dry out between waterings.

 <span>Maxwell Berins</span> Mon, 03/31/2014 - 04:29
I just received a ponytail palm from my mother, and I have been giving it a half a cup of water once a week. But every time I water the plant, mold grows on the soil. What do I do?
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Wed, 04/02/2014 - 15:32

Is the mold sticky and does it disappear after the soil dries out? You may be giving the palm too much water. Let the soil dry out and then check for insects (mealy bugs are common). You may have to repot the palm in fresh soil.

 <span>Maureenf98</span> Sat, 03/22/2014 - 11:53
I've inherited a small ponytail palm that was barely watered and has a lot of dead leaves. I'd like to bring this plant back if possible. Any advice on whether or not that is possible?
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Mon, 03/24/2014 - 18:59

First, we would change the soil and repot in well-draining bonsai soil. Tip it over and gently pull it out; brush off old soil; gently remove any dead roots. Repot in a container slightly bigger than the roots. Lightly dust the remaining roots with rooting hormone. Do not water for at least a week. Then slowly add small amounts of water over the next few weeks afterward. Keep it lots of light but not direct sun. Only water when dry. It does not need much water.