My yuccas, Central Europe, Poland, zone 6.

marceli · Post by **marceli** » Wed Sep 26, 2012 1:28 am

Hi guys!

I'd like to show my yuccas in this cold piece of land, called Poland

Y. gloriosa
It looked awful after last winter. I was worried it won't make it! The beginning of April:

The beginning of August:

The other one with less winter damage. April:

It was their first winter outdoor. Min. temp.: -30C / -22F for almost 2 weeks

August:

This the species I'd like to ask you about. ID please, if possible. Bought it as glauca, but few people told me it's not glauca at all. Photos:

Here's how they looked like after planting:

After the winter:

What species might it be? Any clues?

I also planted Y. baccata, Y. glauca, Y. recurvifolia, Y. Elegantissima (probably). Take a look:

igor.glukhovtsev · Post by **igor.glukhovtsev** » Wed Sep 26, 2012 2:55 am

Welcome to the Club, buddy. Which part of Poland are you from?

marceli · Post by **marceli** » Wed Sep 26, 2012 3:04 am

Greetings

It's central Poland, not far from Vistula river. I wish it was western Poland - they have milder and shorter winters.

igor.glukhovtsev · Post by **igor.glukhovtsev** » Wed Sep 26, 2012 3:47 am

No worries, Marceli, my home town is about 4 thousand kilometers east off yours but still there are a lot opportunities growing exotic stuff. But I live more southern too

I have 20 + species of Yucca germinated this year. Have no idea how to overwinter them... Too many.

marceli · Post by **marceli** » Wed Sep 26, 2012 3:53 am

Maybe you have something interesting for me then?

Paul Ont · Post by **Paul Ont** » Wed Sep 26, 2012 6:44 am

Welcome to the board! Nice to have another zone 4 buddy!

I can't I.D. your small Yucca, sorry.

P.S. If (when) the temp hit -30C here, even Yucca filamentosa will burn (well, the exposed leaves anyway).

marceli · Post by **marceli** » Wed Sep 26, 2012 6:56 am

I built them a roof to prevent from winter moisture. This year I'm gonna build something like a big polytunnel with ventilation holes and remove it in spring time.

hardyjim · Post by **hardyjim** » Wed Sep 26, 2012 7:21 am

Very nice

That is some serious cold at -22F -Yikes!

marceli · Post by **marceli** » Wed Sep 26, 2012 7:36 am

Usually we get -22C/-4F, which is very cold, but last winter was different. I hope I won't see lows like that this winter!

lucky1 · Post by **lucky1** » Wed Sep 26, 2012 11:02 am

Hi Marceli, wow -30C is brutal.

Hope you don't have another winter like that for 10 years.

Great recovery on your yuccas.

Hopefully Tim will chime in here for the ID of your yucca.

Barb

Paul Ont · Post by **Paul Ont** » Wed Sep 26, 2012 12:31 pm

Barb- This is the part that bothers me: http://nsidc.org/arcticseaicenews/
Year to year ice is also decreasing, as is the ice thickness. Yikes.

Apparently large-scale arctic melt often spells cold winters for Europe (sorry Europeans).

marceli · Post by **marceli** » Wed Sep 26, 2012 12:42 pm

I'm sick of harsh and long winters. A little -10C / 14F with snow cover will do

Godfryd · Post by **Godfryd** » Wed Sep 26, 2012 12:42 pm

Hello Marceli,

Nice to see you here in PN

Hope to see your Yuccas and other plants in good condition all over the year!

marceli · Post by **marceli** » Wed Sep 26, 2012 12:46 pm

Godfryd wrote:Hello Marceli,

Nice to see you here in PN
Hope to see your Yuccas and other plants in good condition all over the year!

OMG! You're the last person I expected to see here

lucky1 · Post by **lucky1** » Wed Sep 26, 2012 4:51 pm

arctic melt often spells cold winters for Europe (sorry Europeans).

Yes, that certainly is a concern.
And all the governments jostling for "position" on mineral rights...

I've observed over the last few years that cold arctic blasts descend out of Siberia and slide down Alaska and into central BC.

Barb

DesertZone · Post by **DesertZone** » Wed Sep 26, 2012 7:15 pm

Nice yuccas!

seedscanada · Post by **seedscanada** » Wed Sep 26, 2012 7:30 pm

The first of two pictures you ask about... looks how my Yucca glaucas looked a year ago. They have since stiffened and shown filaments. The second photo, looks even more like glauca since there is more filament visible. Another possibility is Yucca constricta

marceli · Post by **marceli** » Wed Sep 26, 2012 11:02 pm

Thanks for helping with id! Maybe it's glauca after all. I'm wondering because leaves are not narrow and there are not many of them. It's already forming a small trunk:

One of my unknown yuccas died some time ago, but new offpsring appeared. Six or maybe more small yuucas appeared:

Should I dig'em out before winter and pot up, ot leave'em be?

lucky1 · Post by **lucky1** » Thu Sep 27, 2012 11:46 am

My plain ole' yucca filamentosa are sending up a ton of babies too.
A bit of a nuisance because they're filamentosa...(wish y.rostrata would do that

)

Because the mother plant died, maybe leave one or two in situ, and dig up/pot the remainder?

That's quite the trunk your other one is forming already.
Nice!

Barb

marceli · Post by **marceli** » Thu Sep 27, 2012 11:53 am

Barb, I'm afraid it's gonna die next spring coz it's slowly turning yellow. Same happened to other one. I wish I'm wrong. I'm kinda get used to my little yucca and like it

lucky1 · Post by **lucky1** » Thu Sep 27, 2012 12:47 pm

it's gonna die next spring coz it's slowly turning yellow

Maybe drainage (versus winter cold) is the problem?
The babies could be dug out and planted in a raised bed?

Barb

marceli · Post by **marceli** » Thu Sep 27, 2012 12:52 pm

It already grows in raised bed and drainage is very good: lots of sand, gravel and a bit of garden soil.

lucky1 · Post by **lucky1** » Thu Sep 27, 2012 6:09 pm

Then it must've been your cold winter.

Are you going to pot up the babies?
They could get hardier with some age.
Barb

DesertZone · Post by **DesertZone** » Thu Sep 27, 2012 7:45 pm

lucky1 wrote:
it's gonna die next spring coz it's slowly turning yellow
Maybe drainage (versus winter cold) is the problem?
The babies could be dug out and planted in a raised bed?

Barb

If it is not a drainage problem than it must be lack of water? Yellow leaf could be too much water, not enough, or lack of iron. They may need more water in the hot summer untill they get bigger?

Cameron_z6a_N.S. · Post by **Cameron_z6a_N.S.** » Thu Sep 27, 2012 9:04 pm

Welcome to the forum, and great shots!

marceli · Post by **marceli** » Thu Sep 27, 2012 11:01 pm

DesertZone wrote:
lucky1 wrote: If it is not a drainage problem than it must be lack of water? Yellow leaf could be too much water, not enough, or lack of iron. They may need more water in the hot summer untill they get bigger?
I watered them maybe 3 times during summer. This may be an issue. If they survive, I'll give'em more water next summer and see what happens.
I'm gonna dig up few babies then and pot'em up.

andym · Post by **andym** » Sat Sep 29, 2012 5:44 pm

Well the Summer here has really been a non event and we have had a lot of rainfall this year. However despite this the yuccas have done well and look healthy. Taking into consideration that Poland has much warmer Summers (according to my Polish friends I work with

) it stands to reason that they would benefit from more regular irrigation. The trick is knowing when to stop and to dry the soil out before the cold arrives. Marceli's predicament is to dry the soil out with a cover and wait for the snow to arrive to protect and insulate the ground and the Yuccas
BTW yellowing could be caused by the lack of Minerals in the soil as has already been said. I don't feed my Yuccas with NPK but once a month during the spring and Summer I give them a feed of Maxicrop seaweed plus iron which will promote root growth and green up the plants

marceli · Post by **marceli** » Sat Sep 29, 2012 11:04 pm

Next year I try more watering during the hottest periods and see what happens. I overwintered them under a roof (they grow together with cacti), so there were no snow insulation at all:

DesertZone · Post by **DesertZone** » Sun Sep 30, 2012 12:12 pm

That is how I cover my plants, looks good!

marceli · Post by **marceli** » Sun Sep 30, 2012 12:19 pm

Looks funny, but proved to be effective during last winter

marceli · Post by **marceli** » Fri Oct 05, 2012 1:11 am

Dug out already:

Check out these roots:

marceli · Post by **marceli** » Sun Oct 14, 2012 2:53 am

Covered and ready for incoming winter

lucky1 · Post by **lucky1** » Sun Oct 14, 2012 10:19 am

marceli,
your weather sticker says 12C; I'd pull the plastic up high and tie it so the yucca is protected from rain.
Too warm to enclose it in plastic now, I think.

Barb

marceli · Post by **marceli** » Sun Oct 14, 2012 11:35 am

You can't see from this perspective, but I made two "windows" on both sides to improve ventilation and protect them from cooking

Should be enough I guess.

TimMAz6 · Post by **TimMAz6** » Sun Oct 14, 2012 7:56 pm

nice Yuccas. You have some cold temps. I'm not sure on the ID of those Yuccas. When they grow up a little more I'm sure we can ID them for you. Do you have a few close up photos of the unknown Yuccas?

marceli · Post by **marceli** » Sun Oct 14, 2012 10:43 pm

Tim, this is the closest photo I got atm: http://i571.photobucket.com/albums/ss15 ... G_2927.jpg

Do you want me to take pictures of leaves and already forming trunk? I can crawl under my teepee and do that

TimMAz6 · Post by **TimMAz6** » Wed Oct 17, 2012 6:34 pm

The unknown Yucca is still not 'mature' so it's ID is difficult. If I had to guess I would say it's a Y. arkansana but it could be other species like filamentosa, flaccida, a hybrid or less likely constricta.............possible others??. I don't see any glauca in it. A bloom would help very much.

marceli · Post by **marceli** » Thu Oct 18, 2012 3:03 am

According to bennyskaktus.dk Invalided published name of arkansana is Yucca glauca var. arkansana. Might be the reason why sellers sell those as glauca

Judging from this picture: http://www.bennyskaktus.dk/images/Yucca ... 54C_01.JPG it might be Y. arkansana, but are they really so hardy? Time will tell I guess.

DesertZone · Post by **DesertZone** » Thu Oct 18, 2012 5:22 pm

marceli wrote:Time will tell I guess.

I think it will live.

TimMAz6 · Post by **TimMAz6** » Thu Oct 18, 2012 7:38 pm

Hi Marceli,

I was just looking at the roots of the Yucca you just dug up. Is this the 'unknown' Yucca? The roots are not of filamentosa or flaccida. The roots are more like a western Yucca like glauca or elata........but the leaves are wide unlike glauca or elata. I bet you have a form of Y. arkansana.

Y. arkansana blooms can be 'racemose' like Y. glauca. I bet when your 'unknown' Yuccas bloom they will be 'racemose'.......this is why the seller called them Y. glauca. A 'racemose' bloom has little to no branches on the bloom. Here's a photo of a Y. arkansana in my garden to show you a 'racemose' bloom.

this Yucca arkansana has intermediate width leaves which are wider than glauca but narrower than filamentosa.......the bloom is more like glauca.
<img src=http://www.bennyskaktus.dk/images/other ... -16-01.jpg>