Tips For Trimming Your Croton Shrubs ✂😄 // Growing Tropical🌴

[@amandareinhart5553]

I'm in south Florida and we haven't trimmed our crotons because I've been too afraid to! So glad I found this video!! Thanks so much for making this so informative and easy to tackle our croton shrugs!!

[@GrowingTropical]

Hey Amanda! Glad you found me too 😃

[@Connie1Fan]

I felt the same, I think I have a bigger problem because is an oder croton and is so tall and bony, not sure how to trim it in down, is an old one, about 8 feet tall already..

[@celestial_cat7776]

Beautiful points made! Also want to note that the way you prune it gives an option for propagating more plants. You could start a small business like that.

[@doridevera7193]

Nice tip for trimming crotons. Thanks a lot! God bless!

[@plantgurugangsta7299]

Your yard is beautiful 😍 your own little oasis botanical garden. Goals.

[@fortlauderdalegirl]

Most plant related videos are usually indoor potted plant care or small garden up north. Thank you for doing a FLORIDA outdoor plant care video. I’m in Fort Lauderdale and really love gardening, I have a few crotons in my yard and will be planting some today. I have a Picasso / Paintbrush Croton and he’s a very slow grower, a bit leggy now since I’ve had it around five years. It’s a hard variety to find and I make sure to water and fertilize when needed. Maybe I will try pruning and propagation. Thanks and your sidewalk in your yard looks wonderful!

[@GrowingTropical]

Thank you, fortlauderdalegirl! Happy Gardening 😀🌺🌴

[@muriellockhoff9560]

Thank you again you help me a lot I only have one I have a small garden I am enjoying your information and help

[@GrowingTropical]

Glad to help! 😀

[@jessybullecer5935]

Thanks Darla for this nice and very informative video.

[@GrowingTropical]

Your welcome Jessy and thanks for watching 😀

[@muriellockhoff9560]

Thank you I have one in my yard i am glade you did this your garden is Special

[@GrowingTropical]

Thank you! Crotons are one of my favorites : )

[@katieellis8801]

Very informative! Thanks for another great video :)

[@Connie1Fan]

Beautiful little walk way.. Thanks 😊

[@GrowingTropical]

Thank you Connie! 😊

[@prachujyabaruah5895]

Nice.. Keep on posting good videos like this

[@GrowingTropical]

Thank you, I will try. Appreciate your watching the channel! : )

[@prachujyabaruah5895]

@@GrowingTropical pleasure

[@marilynrivera4327]

Very helpful! Thank you so much 😊

[@GrowingTropical]

You are most welcome, Marilyn! Thank you for watching the channel 🥰

[@ejyost]

Thank you Darla. Your information is very helpful. I learned to garden in MN and now spend much of the year in SW Florida, so plant care here is new to me. I'm looking for more tips on how to trim the 4-5 foot Petra crotons and how to encourage growth on the completely gray and leggy lower 2/3 of the plants. Do you or your followers have suggestions? I know I could just replace them. As an added note, this garden was left by a previous owner and the crotons were in the wrong spots. I am happy to say that I transplanted these crotons in April and 2 of 3 survived the dry summer of 2023. I babied them by watering twice a day for the first 3 weeks and then relied on the irrigation system. I now understand most recomment not attempting to transplant crotons. Beginner's luck.

[@katrinsanchez8136]

Thank you so much for this video!

[@GrowingTropical]

Hi Katrin! You are most welcome, and thank you for watching the channel 😀 🌺

[@arliencredo8300]

Hi ma'am ,I'm a new subscriber in your channel, I'm glad that I saw you and learned a lot about crotons ... croton is my favorite plants

[@GrowingTropical]

Hello Arlien! Thank you for subscribing 😀

[@soozieevans7222]

Maybe you can help me with what plants to add to my pallet. I am removing these bushes, don’t know why I planted them, hiding the house. I love that one croton you have by the palm. I have to remove another bush that was always hacked by the landscape company that we used. They are called lemon/limes, not crotons I’m not down at my house enough to monitor but now that I am retired I CAN DO MORE😊.

[@mattd9094]

Great video. Thanks for sharing. I'm in North Florida and this past freeze has done damaged to my outside planted crotons, some more than others. From doing searches on the internet the advice I am getting is to not trim the shocked croton shrubs until the weather gets warmer. Do you think they will bounce back and the dead leaves will just drop off?

[@GrowingTropical]

Hey Matt! How far North? Crotons most generally hate anything below 40 degrees and will start losing leaves. However, depending on how much of a freeze, its possible they will die. The advice you received was absolutely 💯 correct! Don't trim until it starts to maintain nighttime temps above 40. Hopefully, they will come back beautifully 🌴

[@mattd9094]

@@GrowingTropical Hi Darla. Saint Augustine. I will be patient and hope for the best.

[@anmolguria5443]

Mam..ln which month we should trim or prune our crotons...

[@GrowingTropical]

Hi Anmol! Trimming your Croton depends on where you live with respects to your climate. I live in South Florida where we don't see freezing temperatures, so I can usually trim most times of the year. I usually avoid January and February since this is a cooler time and plants slow there growth. Crotons are zoned typically 10 and warmer. So I would recommend Trimming in the Spring when all danger of frost is gone and anytime during the summer. I hope this information helps. Happy Gardening 😊

[@lisaducos4500]

Hi I recently bought Mamet crotons and I want to plant them in the ground but I’m not sure what the best way is to do that without having them go thru changes. Do u have a video I can follow? I live near ft Lauderdale and it’s December

[@GrowingTropical]

Hi Lisa! Thanks for watching the channel! I just love my Crotons. So many varieties to choose from and they grow so well here in our South Florida zone 10 temps. I will try to post a follow up video on Crotons. My experience is growing them mostly in my landscape, however, I have grown them in containers. I find that making sure not to disturb the root system on Crotons whether planting in the ground or containers is a real key element to keeping them from dying back. Happy gardening 🌺😀

[@joeahodoe543]

It didn’t hurt your feelings that bad I think we got the picture without the actual butchering or the picture woulda been suffice 😂

[@DebyColes]

Hi Darla, I've moved into a garden where the crotons have been left to grow really big and are now 5 ft tall. They look amazing but are far far too big. But the growth is mostly all on the ends of the stems and I'm scared to prune it back hard into the wood where there aren't any leaves left. I don't want to go from magnificent to bare and completely kill it. Any tips for how to prune when I need to really reduce the bush in size by a lot. Will it reshoot if I cut into the brown? Thanks

[@GrowingTropical]

Hi Deby! I bet your Crotons are just beautiful 😍 I have been having some issues with Scale insects on mine and had to cut them back to what I call the "bare bones" so in my experience Crotons are pretty tough and can be cut back pretty hard. I would determine what height you want and just cut right into to the wood just above a node. Don't worry...they will come back as beautiful as ever. If would would like, check out my video here ~ kzbin.info/www/bejne/roOqmWOubaqJjbs Happy Gardening 🪴😄

[@thomashudson7780]

I'm in zone 10 also and have new croton plants also- thanks for this information- mine are in a garden bed and doing good- I think the hit of milorganite really made a big difference.

[@elainestefancic7799]

My croton is invested with some things. The stems are all black. What can I do to save it!😮

[@GrowingTropical]

Hey Elaine! Oh no! I'm no stranger when it comes to bugs on my plants. It sounds to me like you might possibly have scales. They are very tiny, soft, green looking bumps and hard to see. The scale secrete a sugary substance that attracts ants, and then it leaves a black sooty mold all over your stems. I would suggest looking very close to your stems to see if this is what you have. You will want to blast the stems with a hose to knock off as many as possible. Then, I would suggest using either a neem oil or an insecticidal soap to suffocate the scale. You can take a little Dawn dish soap and wash the stems to give it a better appearance. I do this, but it's not necessary. I hope this helps 😀

[@fionarose673]

What is that gorgeous plant behind the mammy croton?

[@GrowingTropical]

Hi Fiona! I think the plant you are referring to is a copper plant. This variety turns a beautiful bronze color in the full sun and is heat tolerant. I also have a yellow 💛 and white color variety. Thank you for watching the channel. 😃

[@plantgurugangsta7299]

For the "petra" variety, is it ok to cut the lower, older leaves to promote bushy growth? Or will it just stay bare down there and not grow back? I'm struggling to find info on this, everyone I've seen specifically says to cut thr NEW growth off but the new growth is so beautiful! I dont wanna lol...the older growth isn't as nice on mine. I have never pruned it and had it for about a yr.

[@GrowingTropical]

Hello there! I'm with you, I wouldn't want to trim off the new growth either. If you trim off and clean out the dead leaves on the lower portion of your Croton it will promote new growth just below your cut and create a bushier look. I had a really bad infestation of scale insects on several Crotons last season and I did a hard prune, I mean a cut back down to the bare bones kind of pruning on the Croton featured in the video pictured. You can see how beautiful and lush it is. Crotons are very resilient and come back very quickly. If you cut the STEM that the dead leaves are on and not the LEAF itself, your Croton will come back bushier an healthier every time. I hope this helped your understanding a little bit more and I really appreciate your watching the video. 😀

[@meunrath83]

After trimming how long will it take to grow back out

[@GrowingTropical]

Hello Meunrath83! Living here in South Florida, my Crotons are trimmed 3 to 4 times throughout the year, so I generally don't see them bare. But the times I have had to cut them back to the bare bones due to significant bug damage, they take about 3 to 4 weeks to start seeing new growth. Thank you for watching the channel ☺️ 🌴

[@jorgeamador2619]

Excellent video. What is the name of the last Croton plant . thanks

[@GrowingTropical]

Hi Jorge, that is a "gold dust" variety Croton. 😊

[@kharmencita1654]

But you don't have the most beautiful croton i ever seen!!!! The Tamara Croton!!!! It is so beautiful with its dominant white than green leaves!!! It has similarity to Croton Andrew too but i noticed Andrew had more green than white! But both are beautiful! I got two of them just as tall as my height 1 meter and 50 cm. 😊😊

[@SherrailDAmato]

My crochet has never been trimmed. But some are getting to tall. How much can I cut them back?

[@GrowingTropical]

Hey Sherrail! I let my Crotons get pretty big as well, but you can trim them back as a low growing shrub too. Some of mine are as low as 2-3ft tall. Thank you for watching the channel 😃

[@garymarshall1246]

Which l crotons are best in Full Sun not shade

[@GrowingTropical]

Hey Gary! Here are the names of Crotons that do well in South Florida...to name a few. There are a wide variety of cultivars Andrew, Banana, Bush on Fire, Eleanor Roosevelt, Florida Select, Gold Dust, Gold Star, Lauren's Rainbow, Magnificent, Mammy, Mother and Daughter, Mrs. Iceton, Norma, Oakleaf, Petra, Red Iceton, Sunny Star, Superstar, Victoria Gold Bell, Yellow Iceton, Zanzibar. Hope this helps, and thanks for watching the channel 😊

[@garymarshall1246]

Big Thank you. I just planted 2 Golden Malayan Coconut palms and wondered what plants would compliment them? Dwarf Bougainvillea or any other ? And with Golden Malayan i understand they need fertilizer containing Boron? Coffee grounds and bananas contain potassium and boron. Would they be good ?? As a homemade option

[@GrowingTropical]

Hey Gary! I wouldn't suggest Bougainvillea under your Palms since they do require a lot of sun to bloom well. Maybe some Arboricola and copper bushes would add a nice splash if color. As far as your homemade mixture of bananas and coffee grounds, it certainly can't hurt. Just remember, palms do require a balanced fertilizer with micronutrients to perform their best. Happy Gardening 🌴🌺😀

[@arthurblackburn6654]

Darla could you send me some croton mammy cuttings ?!

[@GrowingTropical]

Hey Arthur! I am not set up to mail out cuttings. Living here in South Florida with our heat, those little cutting would most likely die before they reached you. Mammy's are pretty popular, and you can find them in most nurseries and even Walmart. Thanks for watching the channel, and I hope you get your hands on one of these crotons soon. Happy Gardening 😄 🌺

[@erinjoy5625]

How do I find out what zone I am in ?

[@GrowingTropical]

Hey Erin! Here is a website you can go to for information planthardiness.ars.usda.gov I live in South Florida and use this website www.south-florida-plant-guide.com. Hope this helps 😊

[@magiceniem1408]

I followed you, you look wonderful more than Croton

[@GrowingTropical]

Thank you so much 😀

[@magiceniem1408]

@@GrowingTropical you welcome beautiful

[@GrowingTropical]

Please let me know what you think of this video...would love to hear from ya'll! 😃👍

[@meunrath83]

Just bought a house and it has crotons all around it. They are very tall and leggie. Is there a proper way to prune them to be knee high and bushy.

[@GrowingTropical]

Absolutely! Just trim them down to the height you desire making sure to prune only the stems (like demonstrated in this video). Depending on where you live, I would recommend pruning your Crotons in the spring after any danger of freezing has past. Remember, they will most likely look a little sad after a hard prune, but will regenerate very quickly. Happy gardening 😀

[@meunrath83]

Live in FL and is hot most days. Is it too late to trim them for summer

[@GrowingTropical]

Not at all! Perfect timing for a good spring pruning 😀 ✂️

[@pinkirajput9725]

Mam, after repoting my croton plant leaves drooping, what should i do? Solution ples

[@GrowingTropical]

Crotons can be a bit fussy when it comes to repotting and transplanting, but dont get discouraged. Make sure to give it plenty of water and out of full sun until it has a chance to rebound. The beautiful thing with crotons are they flush back very quickly after leaf loss. Happy gardening 😁