Yucca queretaroensis haircut

On Saturday, I finally got around to a project I'd been postponing for quite a while: trimming the Yucca queretaroensis in the smaller of the two succulent mounds in the front garden. Look how little it was when I got it from Greg Starr in December 2013!

Fast-forward almost seven years:

That cute little plant has grown into a strapping adolescent!

Unfortunately, it's leaves are rigid and end in sharp points—perfect for poking an eye out when working near them. To reduce the risk of injury at least somewhat, I cut off a good ⅓ of the bottom leaves. I was shocked by the difference this made:

So much more room, both visually and physically!

Almost enough room to squeeze in a few more plants!

Another before/after comparison:

Definitely more room on all sides! I'm very happy with the result and now feel emboldened to tackle the much larger Yucca rostrata between our house and our neighbor's.

The only tool I used were these pruning shears from Tabor Tools (I've had them since last year and love them). I started by cutting off about ¾ of the leaves in one area, maybe 1½ × 1½ ft. That gave me the clearance I needed to work my way forward and then around the stem. The entire task took less than an hour to complete.

Some info on Yucca queretaroensis: This yucca species from Central Mexico wasn't described until 1989 and is still fairly uncommon in gardens. It’s an upright species to 12 ft. tall that resembles Yucca linearifolia but has slightly wider leaves and a heavier trunk. 

Greg Starr has a good write-up about Yucca queretaroensis on his web site, including photos of mature specimens in habitat. He says it's proven hardy to the low 20's in Tucson, but I suspect it's even hardier than that. Availability, unfortunately, is still quite limited.

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