Pruning and Deadheading

Expect the lower leaves to yellow and die off as your cordyline grows. Removing these will maintain a neat appearance and reveal the woody ‘trunk’: simply pull the old leaves off, steadying the plant with your other hand if it is still young and at risk of snapping.

If your cordyline has become too large for the space or sustained winter damage, it can be cut back to any point on the woody stem, from which it should regrow quickly. Do this in mid spring – sawing through the stem just above a sideshoot or even down to ground level (you may need to enlist help with this if it’s a large specimen!). This is likely to encourage the formation of a multi-stemmed form.

When it comes to flowers, you may deadhead cordyline if you wish, or leave spent flowers intact to produce small red or purple berry-like fruits.

Watering

Cordyline is not a particularly thirsty plant, though does still need some watering. When planting it in the open ground, give a good initial soaking, then a few more over that first summer while its roots establish. Allowing the top few centimetres of soil to dry out between each time is a good way to avoid overwatering (to check, wiggle your finger down until you feel moisture). Once established, your cordyline should be self-sufficient in all but unusually prolonged periods of drought.

Cordyline grown in a container requires a little more attention as its root run is limited. Water regularly throughout the growing season – again allowing the top few centimetres of compost to dry out, checking this with the finger wiggle technique as above. Keep almost dry in winter, giving it just enough moisture to prevent the compost drying out completely.

Feeding

On healthy, fertile soil, an annual mulch of well-rotted organic matter (i.e., a layer of manure or garden compost applied to the soil around the plant) should provide sufficient nutrients for your cordyline. This has the added benefit of suppressing weeds, locking in moisture, and – if applied in autumn – insulating the roots during winter.

For an extra boost (perhaps your cordyline is looking stressed or you garden on poor soil), applying a general-purpose granular feed to the surface of the soil and lightly working in (known as a ‘top dress’) can reap benefits. Aim to do this once or twice a year if needed, firstly in spring and then again in midsummer.  

Container-grown plants rely more on the gardener for nutrition. Get off to a flying start by making sure you use a good quality compost, then throughout the growing season (March to September) apply a liquid feed at regular intervals according to instructions. An annual top dress is also advisable: each spring, scrape off the top 5cm of compost and replace with fresh compost containing a little general purpose granular feed.

Cold Protection

Unless you can offer a mild microclimate, you’ll need to provide winter protection for your cordyline. When grown in a container, this can be as simple as moving it indoors between October and May. A bright, cool, frost-free environment such as a greenhouse, conservatory, or porch is ideal. Failing this, move your container right up against a sheltered, south-facing wall and protect as below.

For cordyline left outside over winter (either growing in the open ground or in a container), the following steps will significantly reduce the chances of winter damage:

• Wrap up the leaves, both as a protection against wind damage and to prevent water collecting in the growing points. Using a non-abrasive tie such as soft string or raffia, knot around the top of the trunk and wind upwards, bunching all the leaves into a point.
• Insulate the roots. In the open ground this can be done with a thick, autumn mulch, whilst containers can be wrapped in fleece or hessian.
• In very cold areas, it can also be worth wrapping the trunk too.

Remove any ties or wrapping in late winter/ early spring as the temperature begins to warm.

Pests and Diseases

Pests and diseases are rarely a problem for cordyline, though scale insects and red spider mites can be a problem for plants that spend a significant amount of time indoors. Keeping plants as healthy as possible is the key to warding off problems, and by this we mean proper ventilation, adequately spaced plants (for good air flow), keeping everything well-watered and fed, and repotting into larger containers when necessary. Thoroughly cleaning the indoor environment every winter can also help to remove overwintering populations of pests.

Where infestations do take hold, try introducing biological controls (often sachets or tubes containing miniscule natural predators), or in the worst cases, remove the affected plant/s altogether.