When would it be a good time to transplant

[warrior1]

this pony tail palm?

It's in it's original container and is doing well. I would like to see it get bigger and maybe separate the bulbs. I do not want to kill it. Should I wait, or is it a pretty hardy plant?

thanks

[TygrBright]

1. You won't kill it, but it will sulk bitterly for a while...

I'd wait until the bases are bigger, practically busting out of the current pot. They like cramped rootspace. If you re-pot now, you won't see much new leafage for a long time and the current leafage will droop a bit.

But don't worry about killing it. It looks like a happy li'l green guy, so it'll survive okay. Just put the newly-separated-and-repotted plants back in the same place so they have the same light exposure, temperature cycles, etc., that they're used to now for a while. When they take hold and start showing new growth you can relocate a couple.

horticulturally,
Bright

[warrior1]

2. What if I keep the

bases together and put it in a bigger pot? What size would you recommend?

thanks for the info BTW.

[TygrBright]

3. You're better off dividing and re-potting...

...since you'll have to do that eventually anyway. The less you can mess with it, the happier it will be, and it LIKES being cramped in a little pot, believe it or not.

When you do divide and repot, you'll have a choice: Larger pots (say, 2" all around between the base and the pot rim,) or tighter pots (1" or less all around between the base and the pot rim.) The more root space it has, the slower it will be to put out new top growth. OTOH, the larger the pot you put them into, the longer it will be until the next time you have to repot.

horticulturally,
Bright

[warrior1]

4. Thank you

I appreciate the information.