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Hello Terry, Cordylines are not fully hardy I'm afraid so you may have lost them in the unusually cold winter. I would hold tight and keep your fingers crossed though as the plants may rally in summer this year. I'm sorry not to be more help. Helen Plant Doctor

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Hello Richard, It sounds as if your Cordylines are putting on lateral growth, which is quite normal as they mature. This can be prompted if the main stem has suffered some form of damage, but it can just happen spontaneously. These will eventually develop into branching stems, so if you want to keep yours as single stemmed specimens, you should remove them while they are still very small. I hope this helps. Helen Plant Doctor

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Hello Alan, Once the flower spike has died right back and no longer looks attractive you can either leave it to produce seeds which can be used to create more plants, or you can cut it off at the base. I hope this helps. Helen

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Hello Charles, These plants can be propagated by stem cuttings, but these side shoots will not grow if you remove them and pot them up. If you want to attempt to take stem cuttings, then you should remove sections of a healthy stem, each one with one or two nodes and slice each section in half lengthwise. If the inner section is moist, then root them in moist sharp sand, however if it is dry, you can use a freely draining cutting compost. Lay the cuttings cut side down on top of the sand or soil, water and keep in bright shade at 18-21C until they have rooted. Alternatively you can take a 5-8cm section of stem (cutting just above a node) with one leaf attached. Fill a pot with sharp sand and half bury the stem vertically and trim the leaf by half. Water and keep at temperature as before. Unfortunately though, this does mean you have to chop up your perfectly lovely plant.

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There could be a number of reasons why your palm isn't doing very well, but the most likely culprits are temperatures which are too low (they are not quite fully hardy) or too much water. If it has deteriorated further since being potted up, then it may be in shock from root disturbance, or the initial damage was just too severe. The only thing you can do now is to give it a little more time and see if it rallies around, although it sounds as if it may need replacing.

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It definitely sounds as if the plants have suffered from shock. The most likely cause is root disturbance, but the other thing that springs to mind is the use of fertiliser. If too much was applied then it may have scorched the already damaged roots. The only thing I can suggest now is to keep an eye on them, water when they get dry and hopefully they will survive.