Actual size and flowering may vary slightly based on season.
Thompson's Yucca 1 Head 3-5 ft
Thompson's Yucca 1 Head 3-5 ft is a single-headed Thompson's yucca already 3 to 5 feet tall. It has one tidy rosette of short, blue-silver leaves on a short trunk. It grows slowly and branches into several heads over the years, so this size gives you a finished accent now with room to develop. It takes full sun, reflected heat and hard cold.
Best for: a single accent in a medium bed, a hot spot by a wall or driveway, and desert groupings with low agaves and barrels.
One neat rosette on a short trunk makes a clean accent in a medium bed. It stays in scale with smaller plants for years because it grows slowly.
It takes full sun and the reflected heat off walls, driveways and paving. A driveway edge or a south wall suits it.
Pair it with low agaves and golden barrel cactus, where its blue-silver head rises above them.
Soggy ground rots the roots, so plant it where water drains. Each leaf ends in a sharp tip, so keep it back from walks and pool edges.
- Closer group3 ft apart, center to center
- Wider group4 ft apart, center to center
Keep the root area slightly damp until the plant roots in. Once rooted, give it a deep soak every 2 to 4 weeks in summer, less in spring and fall, and little or none in winter.
Set it at the depth it grew and keep the side that faced the sun facing south. At this size one person with gloves can usually set it. A light shade cloth helps until new growth shows, and it needs no fertilizer.
Old leaves fold down around the trunk, and trimming them is up to you. Cut spent flower stalks low once they finish.
If leaves wilt or lean and the base goes soft, look for snout weevil grubs at the base. Keep the soil on the dry side, and remove a collapsed plant with the soil around it.
Drainage test first. Dig the hole and fill it with water. If water is still sitting in the hole a day later, you likely hit caliche, clay or hard soil, so fix the drainage before planting. If it drains very fast, the soil is sandy. Standing water around roots is a common reason new plants fail.
Weed cloth. Cut it away from the planting hole and where the roots will spread. Remove any plastic sheeting completely, since it keeps water and air out of the soil.
Rock or decomposed granite with no soil underneath. Bring in soil close in texture to your native soil, mix it with the soil below, and build up enough depth for roots before planting.
If you can break through. Use a breaker bar, pick, or jackhammer. Dig through the caliche and break out the solid chunks. Backfill with the soil you dug out, with no compost or manure in the hole. Confirm drainage before planting.
If you cannot break through. Dig narrow holes through the hard layer beside the root ball, not under it, and refill them with the same soil, not gravel. If it still will not drain, plant on a low mound of the same soil.
Root ball. Check the outside edges for any roots circling around. Loosen or cut those so they grow outward. Do not break up the center of the root ball.
Depth. The top of the root ball should sit at or just slightly above the surrounding soil level. Planting too deep can lead to rot and kill the plant.
Drip emitters. At planting, put the emitters on the root ball, on different sides of the plant. After about 2 months, move them to the outer edge of the root ball. Over the first year, add emitters farther out toward the edge of the branches as roots grow. Once a plant is rooted, never water only at the trunk.
What does 1 head 3-5 ft mean?
The plant has one rosette, or head, and stands about 3 to 5 feet tall now. Over many years it can branch into several heads.
How big will it get?
It grows slowly, usually to about 6 feet and sometimes 10, and 4 to 10 feet wide as heads form.
Should I get this size or the taller one?
This size fits medium beds and stays in scale with smaller plants for years. Choose the 5-7 ft plant if you want more height against a tall wall now.
How do I water it?
Keep the roots slightly damp until it roots in. Once rooted, give it a deep soak every 2 to 4 weeks in summer and little or none in winter.
Can it take reflected heat?
Yes. It likes full sun and reflected heat, so it works beside walls, drives and paving.
How cold hardy is it?
It is very cold hardy, rated to about -20°F, so it needs no frost cover in the Valley.
When does it bloom?
In late spring to early summer, with 3 to 5 foot stalks of creamy white flowers. It does not die after blooming.
Is it toxic to pets?
Yucca is listed as toxic to dogs, cats and horses, and the sharp tips can injure a pet. Plant it where pets will not chew it.
Thompson's Yucca 1 Head 3-5 ft for sale in Arizona, delivered to you
This Thompson's yucca is a single-head plant 3 to 5 feet tall, a size that fits medium beds while it slowly branches. This page covers size, planting, water, heat, cold and flowers.
Sourced from trusted Arizona growers and delivered directly to your door, job site, or property. We deliver across the Valley and to nearby towns, and quote delivery anywhere else in Arizona.
Single-head Thompson's yucca, 3 to 5 feet
One rosette on a short trunk, already 3 to 5 feet tall, ready for a medium bed.
How big Thompson's yucca gets
Usually about 6 feet, sometimes 10, and 4 to 10 feet wide as it branches.
Watering Thompson's yucca
Slightly damp until rooted, then a deep soak every 2 to 4 weeks in summer.
Thompson's yucca in reflected heat
It likes full sun and reflected heat off walls and paving.
How far apart to plant
Set plants 3 to 4 feet apart, center to center, for a group.
Thompson's yucca flowers
Creamy white flowers open on 3 to 5 foot stalks in late spring and early summer.
We deliver across the Valley, from Phoenix, Scottsdale and Mesa out to San Tan Valley, Maricopa and Casa Grande, and up to Prescott, Sedona, Payson and Globe. See delivery areas and rates.