market. Members of this popular genus are grown as houseplants that can tolerate well indoor conditions and low maintenance.
Even though they can grow in low light, bright locations with indirect light are also suitable. However a direct sunlight, or too much of it, as well as watering in direct sun, may cause scorched patches on the foliage.
The requirements for temperature and humidity of these very adaptable plants are very easy to satisfy : watering once or twice a week only suffices, but a complete drying out of the soil should be avoided. A droopy plant can indicate a lack of watering. Fertilizers used in small amounts will be in a water soluble form for a healthy boost. They can be applied every month during spring/summer and every two months in fall/winter. Small or slow new growth usually indicates that the plant needs to be fertilized.
Below are some other common problems and their remedies :
When the woody stems of the plant are soft the most common causes are injury or a too wet plant.
If they develop some brown tips, this happens occasionally, leaves can be trimmed off with scissors. Brown edges are usually a consequence of salts building up in the soil or a reaction to fluoride in the water.
Grayish-brown areas on the leaves are a bit more of concern as they may indicate a fungus problem, to be avoided by increasing air circulation and keeping the plant drier while lowering the humidity of the air.
They may drop a few leaves especially when repotting ( in spring ) or when taking them indoors : the sudden change in temperature or the lower level of light may be the cause of this natural adjustment, no disease being at stake.
The shedding of the lower leaves as the plant matures is natural, but it may also be due to the plant being kept too warm and dry.
Dracaenas tend to collect dust on their leaves : you can wipe dust off with a damp cloth.
Finally local climate that couple warm and dry air may trigger the developement of spider mites on Dracaenas. Just like mealy bugs and scale a natural insecticide with regular application will do the job.
Here are the most common sorts of attractive Dracaenas available at aleyagarden :
Dracaena surculosa cv Friedmannii ref # dr1
Left is a cultivar called in Thailand " Florida Beauty " ref# dr2 : it is more spotted than the species above and does not have the white long patches in the center.
Dracaena sanderiana comes in two varieties below : with white edges ref # dr3 and plain green # ref dr11
Dracaena sanderiana ref # dr3 :
Dracaena sanderiana plain green and shiny leaves : ref # dr11
Dracaena reflexa is our ref #dr4 it has narrow leaves and white edges:
The 3 varieties below are Dracaena fragrans, ref #dr7 with larger leaves than Dracaena reflexa and white edges,
Dracaena fragrans ref# dr8 below is a showy variety with pale green inside and plain green edges
Dracaena fragrans ref # dr9 is green. The center of the foliage shows a paler green :
Dracaena cincta Tricolor: there are three varieties, ref # dr10, ref # dr13 and ref # dr14
Dracaena cincta ref # dr10 below has showy red and green :
Dracaena cincta below ref # dr13 shows a beautiful bronze color
Dracaena cincta ref # dr14 below has a nice green with paler edges :
Dracaena spp :
Dracaena ref # dr6 has pupple patches from the center on beautiful non shiny green leaves :
Below Dracaena ref # dr12 comes in three colored leaves : light green on edges, slim white line and darker green center.
Below Dracaena ref # dr15 has a showy plain green foliage with fine white stripes :
Hoya and other plant collections are for sale on hoya-aleyagarden.com Plant care is available in various posts of this blog. Contact : aleyagarden@hotmail.com
