Product Description:
Dracaena marginata, more commonly known as a dragon tree, is an attractive plant with green sword-like, red-edged leaves. Native to Madagascar, the eye-catching spiky tree is known as a great entry plant for household gardeners. This tree can grow up to 20 feet tall outdoors but won’t get taller than 6 feet indoors, especially if you prune it back. It’s a member of the dracaena family, which contains around 120 species of plants native to Africa, northern Australia, and South Asia.
Light:
Dragon trees grow best in bright light but can also survive in partial shade. Keep in mind, plants kept in lower light situations will grow slower and produce smaller leaves with less intense color.
Soil:
When growing dragon tree as a potted plant, use a loose, well-drained potting mix loamy soil amended with peat moss is ideal.
Water:
Like with many drought-tolerant plants, it’s easy to over water the dragon tree. To ensure you don’t drown it, wait until the top half of the soil is dry before watering.
Temperature and Humidity:
Dragon trees prefer warmer temperatures between 70 and 80 degrees Fahrenheit. Regular household humidity should be fine for them, but if your house is particularly dry, you can consider misting the pant lightly from a spray bottle every few days.
Fertilizer:
Dragon trees have a relatively low need for fertilizer and it is not an essential component to having a thriving plant.
Pruning:
It’s perfectly normal for a dragon tree to self-shed dead leaves. Just pick them up and discard them. To keep the plant trim and neat, remove leaves that look like they are about to fall or cut back stems with sterile, sharp pruning shears to tidy up the tree.
Propagating Dragon Tree:
- Using a sterile, sharp scissor, cut a long length of stem that’s about 8 inches. Remove any leaves and remember which end goes down into the soil.
- Put the cutting in potting soil that’s moist.
- Place the cutting in bright, but indirect sunlight.
- Leaves will sprout on the upper nodes of your cutting and top of the cutting as a rosette.
