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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>Gail Coneita</span> Sat, 08/24/2013 - 09:50
Hi, I just bought a pony tail palm at Big Y. There are 3 bulbs in the pot,can I separate them? What's the best soil mixture? I was thinking of cactus and Miracle Grown potting soil. Please let me know as I don't want to wait too long. Thank you
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Mon, 08/26/2013 - 17:31

The palm needs a well-drained soil mix. Cactus soil mix will work. Or you can add sand or small gravel to regular potting soil. You can divide the bulbs. Use a sharp knife and cut between the bulbs and make sure that each one gets roots.

 <span>Barb Short</span> Tue, 08/20/2013 - 14:43
My pony tail palm is at least 25 yrs old & has just recently sprouted a "baby" on the bulb of the plant. Is it possible to remove & start this baby in another pot? If so how should I do it? Do I cut it off with a knife? What about the open wound on the original bulb?
<span>Riversun</span> Sat, 08/17/2013 - 10:22
I bought my ponytail palm several days ago, when I brought it home I started tending to it. It had been improperly cared for. I started to wipe it off (because of spider mites and mold). There was mold on the base, it has returned. I wanted to know, is that normal? If not, what can I do to make the plant better?
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Mon, 08/19/2013 - 10:32

Could you describe the mold? If it is white spots or clusters that appear cottony and feel sticky then its mealy bug. You can use an insecticidal soup spray or contact your local County Extension Office for a diagnosis and more advice.

 <span>Ri-Cola</span> Sun, 08/25/2013 - 21:49
It's a dark green color on the lower base near the soil. I water once every two weeks, so I am now sure it's rot. Also, due to a pressing situation I became worried about the Wooly Aphid infestation on my plant. It was very bad. I cut the leave all the way off my plant. Is there anything I can put on the cut leaves to help it grow back normal? I re-potted it about a week ago, I don't remember there being any mealies on the roots. Is there anything organic I can put in the soil to eliminate and prevent these pest? I would like to help the plant continue to survive.
<span>Ellen Colclough</span> Thu, 08/15/2013 - 10:59
I bought my pony tail palm about 2 years ago from a big box store. It has pebbles glued to the top of it. It is doing well, but should I remove the pebbles and repot it?
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Thu, 08/15/2013 - 12:59

Yes, use a knife or similar to remove the stones carefully (make sure that you don't disturb the roots); or, you can try to break the stones apart. Without the stones, or with them at least separated, it makes it easier for water to penetrate and for you to determine when the plant is thirsty. Repot the plant in light fast-draining potting soil (a bonsai mix works well); make sure the pot has drainage holes. Plant the palm at the same soil level that it was before. Water thoroughly once every 1 to 2 weeks. Let the soil dry up in between waterings.

 <span>Christine Burnett</span> Mon, 08/12/2013 - 20:13
my comment is I have a ponytail palm it was doing good until we moved now the leaves are turning brown is there something i can do? thanks
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Tue, 08/13/2013 - 11:46

Brown leaves are an indicator of improper watering and sometimes insufficient sunlight. Remove the brown leaves.