looking for help.
Todd Martin
Posts: 3
Hi complete beginner at caring for plants here, I was hoping that someone could help my identify this and give me some advise on how to care for it. I seem to be doing more damage than good on my own.
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Todd Martin
Posts: 3
Posts
It's a Dracaena, Todd. The most common issue with them is over-watering. You don't need to water them until the top 2 inches of compost is bone-dry (stick you finger in to test.) They also don't like direct sunlight, but do need a reasonable amount of natural light. Feed then with something like Baby Bio plant food mixed according to instructions every fortnight during spring and summer. They also need re-potting into fresh multi-purpose compost every 2 to 3 years.
If you think over-watering could be the issue, don't water it now until the compost dries out and re-pot it in spring. You can cut it back at that point and new growth will come from the cut stems, but it does take several weeks before you see the first signs of buds forming on the bare stems. The bits of stem you cut off can be potted-up to make new plants.
I had one about 6 feet tall and cut it back as described earlier this year. This is it now with 2 of the babies:
Probably not Jo, as they usually die quite quickly.. The finger test is definitive. Looks like poor light and lack of feeding to me and I would re-pot it.
Thanks for the responses, a little more info may help I did recently repot it and I think thats when it started to decline. My house has very little heating if that has a bearing at all and Im not sure but could I have packed the soil in too tightly? The poor little fellows top soil never seems to dry out.
They are pretty dormant at this time of the year and as the compost is still damp I would just move it a bit nearer a window and not water it until it (hopefully) perks up in spring. I think you repotted it at a less than ideal time of the year, so fingers crossed now.
thanks again