Advice on Cordyline

Hi. I have a cordyline that has really taken off and is now growing into a lovely robinia that I have. If I cut the cordyline down to about three foot, is there any chance of it living and producing new leaves or is that too harsh for it to survive? :confused:

 

It might do but from the bottom, how big does the robinia grow because the cordyline might grow a lot taller, a couple of mine are nearly as tall as my house and flowering lovely every year.

 

Cordylines can often produce three or four offshoots from the base which given time could prove even more of a problem than a single trunk as by nature they will grow away from each other. This can make a spectacular sight giving it a more palm like appearance but may grow into your Robinia again!

 

Ah! My robinia is a gorgeous golden one and my favourite plant in the garden so I do want to protect her.

I live in the Midlands and used to loose cordylines if I didn't fleece them. This one is about eight foot now and hasn't had protection for a couple of years. I hadn't expected it to have the chance to reach such heights! I think I might try cutting it off. It would then be several years before it was a problem again and by then the robinia might have died. My soil is not ideal for them as it is very heavy clay and gets really waterlogged. I always breathe a sigh of relief in Spring when I see her start to bud.
Thanks for your help.
Carrie

 

I too have a Cordyline and a Robinia living side by side - they both look great although I find the bottom growth on the Cordyline a bit of a nuisance. I have to say I've never seen a Cordyline which ha been topped'cut off and would not like to do that to mine.
My Robinia is growing as a standard with three main shoots and looks absolutely great this year with flowers coming out at the moment.

 

Hi this is my first post, so be gentle with me if I done someting wrong or miss something.
We have number of Cordylines of various varieties, mainly growing in pot, but the original two we got a good many years back got to big for pots and got plant in the ground and now stand 10 to 12 feet high.
Just look after them, fleeced then in the winter, feed and watered during the summer, removed the dead leaves etc. Anyway got a bit concerned about them last summer, but it was just they flowered for thew first time, something I had not seen before or expected.

My query is what do with the flowering growth, do I prune or cut back or leave well alone?

 

Leave well enough alone dlindop. They are supposed to flower, a lot of plants do. :D. When leaves die off and look unsightly then just pull them off (don't cut).

 

They often split after flowering, so you may get a double or tripple headed one. Mine flowered last year but doesnt appear to have split, i dont think its going to flower again this year.

I have come across a few people who remove the flower to avoid the mess and the seedlings which may follow.

I have also heard of people cutting the top off to encourage side shoots, but i really wouldnt want to risk this on mine.

Where about are you dlindop as unless you get a very harsh winter I probably wouldnt worry about fleecing a normal cordyline australis.

Gaz

 

BobJ - that picture is stunning. Is it yours? I have two that I thought where getting quite big, now they look like dwarves compared to that!! :D

 

Thanks for the imputs, will be leave well alone