Dreaming of dracaena
Like me, they consider running away when it gets below 17C for more than a few days at a time.
both seem perfectly healthy. They’re in rich, volcanic soil which is not a requirement but which they may see as a bonus, and the soil drains well.
All of this was achieved by accident rather than design, and I was gratified to read quite recently that a dracaena is happy in part-shade as long as there’s enough indirect light. Some water is okay, but soggy feet are not. You can use a basic fertiliser every couple weeks during the growing season to encourage more growth, so I’ll try that this year just to be on the safe side. And that seems to be about it. Experts say that once your dracaena is established outside, you won’t have to give it much attention at all.
If you know what kind of dracaena you are planting, try to provide for that particular variety’s needs. Most are pretty similar, but there will likely be differences in size and how much space the plants need. Some varieties stay low, while others grow up to a couple of metres tall.
Given the right conditions, a dracaena can add drama and style to your landscape design with different heights, shapes, leaf colours, leaf patterns and textures.
If you turn out to be successful at growing dracaena, you may be tempted to propagate them. It takes a bit of courage, though, because the most common method is simply to cut the head off. The procedure is to snip it just below the leaf line and be sure to include at least one node: roots grow from these round, white bumps on the stem. Then either plant your cutting in some soil or put it in water. I’d go for water because you can see when the cutting has rooted. Then you can plant it into soil when the root is about 5cm long.
A word of warning — as much as you might love your dracaena, don’t encourage your dogs and cats to love it too. It’s poisonous to dogs and cats.