A House Plant Shortens Winter

Saturday, December 16, 2006 03:43 AM

A popular tropical houseplant is the Dracaena. They have been found in homes since the Victorian times and their easy care and good looks make them a good choice for any home or office.

The foliage is long sword like leaves that come in varying widths and colors. There are different varieties that grow in different heights ranging from 2 feet to 15 feet. A nice characteristic of the plant is its tall narrow growing habit making it ideal for those narrow spaces where you want height but not width.

There are different varieties available and one of the more common ones is the ’Dracaena fragrans ’Massangeana’ which is often called the corn plant because the foliage resembles that of corn. The green leaves are heavy and ribbon like with a yellowish stripe running through the center of it. Sometimes you will find the corn plant grown with several canes of differing heights in a pot and the leaves of the plant are only at the top of the cane much like a palm tree, while other times the plant has one single cane with leaves going down the length of the stem. The corn plant can tolerate less light than some of the other dracaenas.

Another dracaena that tolerates less light than some of the others is the dracaena marginata (Madagascar dragon tree) which has narrow leaves that have red or purple striping on the edge. As the leaves grow older they turn yellow and fall off leaving a mark on the stem. The Madagascar can grow up to 12 feet high. These are often planted with more than one stem per pot to give it a bushier look.

Two other varieties are the ’Janet Craig’ which has wide dark green glossy leaves and ’Warneckii’ which has white-striped edged leaves. Both of these grow a little smaller and most often have only one stem grown per pot.

One reason for the dracaenas popularity is its ability to thrive in low light areas where other tropicals may not be able to survive. It is also able to tolerate infrequent watering which is another reason they make good office plants or a good plant for those people who tend to forget about watering their plants regularly. When you water a dracaena, give the plant thorough watering using room temperature water. Do not water again until the soil has gone slightly dry. If the plant is kept too wet it could result in root rot which will eventually kill the plant. Fertilize with an all purpose 20-20-20 every month during the growing season (spring and summer) and every 8-10 weeks in the winter and fall when the plant grows much slower.

You will notice that the plant will not grow as quickly when placed in a low light area and so will not need to be watered or fertilized as frequently as it would if it were growing faster in a higher light area. A sign that the plant has been over-fertilized is you will notice the tips of the foliage will become yellow or burnt. Dracaenas enjoy average house temperature and a
regular humidity. If humidity becomes low you can always mist the plant with water.

-Jos

Jos Van Hage owns two Art Knapp Garden Centres in Prince George