Aquired a Ponytail palm tree

[NOT A TA]

Ya, I know, it's not a palm or a tree BUT Beaucarnea recurvata is kinda cool in a weird looking, slow growing, kinda way. I've seen them growing around S FL in places where they obviously get no care at all and yet seem to thrive. My kinda plant! I like the fat ball shaped lump most have at the base of the trunk and so I've named this pup "Lumpy".

A few days ago I was next door at my neighbors taking down some Jack fruit for him because they were waaaay up in a tree requiring my tallest extension ladder fully extended and he's not a ladder kinda guy at all. I noticed he had a 6' Beaucarnea recurvata in his jungle I'd never even noticed before, and with a pup! I told him I wanted to get one and he offered the pup as a gift , probably because I help him with something almost daily. Anyway, today I went over and separated the pup from mom and brought it home.

Pics of mom & pup before separating.

I cut the connecting tissue between mom & pup and with our sandy soil being so loose it popped out of the ground with just a push & gentle pry with a shovel on each side of the plant. Since our soil is so sandy it came up bare root like many other plants.

I considered potting it till I'm ready to make the garden it's going in but I've already got thousands of plants in container ranches about the property I'm trying to reduce so I guessed it's placement in the future garden and planted it. If I'm off I'll move it when I make the garden. Since it's a "Ponytail palm tree" it just made sense to tie up the leaves like a ponytail and make planting easier, right?  Apparently it got tipped at some point then started growing up again so I planted it with the lower portion of the trunk vertical and will attempt to mechanically straighten the kink after it becomes accustomed to it's new home. It's now in full sun so I've gotta make some temporary shade for it while it settles in. The whole area where the container ranch is in the background of the pics will be part of the proposed garden area.

[Walt]

I happen to like ponytail palms, and I have four of them. Two I bought 20 years ago that were smaller than what yours is (Photos 1, 2 and 3 below).  Another was given to me (photo 4) that a friend's neighbor was throwing out (it was potted). A fourth, not shown, was given to me by another friend.  These plants don't seem to have no nutritional or pest problems,  and I don't feed or water them. The only drawback (a minor one, IMO) is picking up the fallen dead (or still attached) leaves.

[Meangreen94z]

I was just down in South Texas. In Harlingen(10a) there was an old shotgun house from the 30’s or 40’s. The only piece of landscaping ? A Beaucarnea  Recurvata  or Guatemalensis with a trunk atleast 4 feet wide at the base. Probably nearly as old as the house. Next time I will try and snap a photo. 

[NOT A TA]

1 hour ago, Walt said:

I happen to like ponytail palms, and I have four of them. Two I bought 20 years ago that were smaller than what yours is (Photos 1, 2 and 3 below).  Another was given to me (photo 4) that a friend's neighbor was throwing out (it was potted). A fourth, not shown, was given to me by another friend.  These plants don't seem to have no nutritional or pest problems,  and I don't feed or water them. The only drawback (a minor one, IMO) is picking up the fallen dead (or still attached) leaves.

Those look great Walt! The one by your vestibule is taller than the ones I've seen locally here.

 

[NOT A TA]

24 minutes ago, Meangreen94z said:

I was just down in South Texas. In Harlingen(10a) there was an old shotgun house from the 30’s or 40’s. The only piece of landscaping ? A Beaucarnea  Recurvata  or Guatemalensis with a trunk atleast 4 feet wide at the base. Probably nearly as old as the house. Next time I will try and snap a photo. 

4' is HUGE! A pic would be great!