Healthy Dracaena Marginata (Dragon Tree) lost center leaves on only 1 of 6 stems...

Good morning from Chicago, IL!

THE QUESTION:
I have attached photos of my tree (1 full body + 1 close-up of the stem in question).

If there is anything that I have done that will have had a truly negative effect on the tree's stem, is that upon examining the inner, yellowing wilt of the young leaves, I plucked them out (without much more effort than would be employed in the basic/proper pruning of outer leaves).

As of now, the remaining leaves of this stem appear to be holding their strength, and in the center, there is a small collection of water around a brown nod (of sorts). Where other stems have this center deep and unseeable through the leaves, this particular stem has this spot open and visible (as there are no inner leaves growing at this current time).

With the other 5 stems appearing to grow normally, is there something going on that may eventually lead to compromising the total plant, or will the removal of these dying center-leaves simply allow the opportunity for new leaves to generate in time?

Thank you for your time and consideration in responding to my inquiry regarding new leaf growth!

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
For more information on the specific environment, watering schedule, and general health of this particular Dragon Tree, please continue reading:

The weather here, in Chicago, is 30-degrees F, with general conditions very similar to Vancouver, B.C. My loft apartment is kept at an average of 60-67-degrees F, with the majority of my tropical plants living upstairs, receiving above-average & well-protected, in-direct sunlight [for an apartment] from both the North and East windows, as well as regular mistings (2-4 a day) and a 1-gallon, Sharper Image Humidifier dispersing 1/3 tank about every 1-3 days (using above-average quality tap-water, with the tank receiving 1-2 days of airing-out to help rid it of unnecessary chemicals between uses).

I have a Dracaena Marginata that I acquired in the late Spring and am now tending to this Winter. Despite a general healthiness about the tree, I have been struggling to learn what I'm dealing with in regards to having lost the inner leaves of 1 of my 6 stems. General watering habits have included: regular mistings on leaves and once-a-day on soil for moisture, & full-waterings once every 2 or 3 weeks. The last full watering was on 1.2.20 (with the next watering not scheduled for another 3-4 weeks to allow an extra period of drying).

*NOTE: I did not re-pot upon purchase and have been/still am working out of the 10-inch plastic pot it arrived in.

After suffering brown tips from drafts near the patio door, I moved this beauty to the upstairs [where all heat rises] and set her in the center of the room (pretty much in the "nucleus" of the loft, well-distanced from the windows and with zero drafts from vents or doors).

Last week, noticing a growing infestation of fungus-gnats, I removed 2-3 inches of soil + eggs & added a good layer of well-breathing lava rock for a protective layer against new-born pests (no gnats have been identified on leaves or near the tree since). [*I have also set a number of cider/vinegar traps around various plants for additional defense.*]

Researching into why the center leaves were yellowing and drooping more than the outer/elder leaves, I learned to prune the older, heavier, most-drooping leaves as to redirect energy to newer growths. Since removing about 15-20% of elder leaves (this percentage being spread across the total of all 6 stems/shoots), I have noticed a significant rebound in the younger leaves that had been yellowing and wilting. This process led to the plucking out of the youngest, yellow & nearly translucent inner-leaves...

In addition to these efforts to encourage revitalization to the yellowing/drooping of this tropical plant, I have begun giving it "shower time" in the bathroom to absorb some of the heat/humidity from the running shower. This new experiment has had a noticeable effect on the re-strengthening and deepening in the color of the leaves.

Thank you again for your time and for reading and responding to my question and research,
-J.g

 

Welcome to the forum.

There may be some rot in that one stem. The presence of fungus gnats in large numbers is an indicator of overly wet soil conditions which often lead to root rot. As a preventive measure I would prune back the top of the stem to a point where it is still healthy and solid, with no sign of rot within. Take care to disinfect your pruners with alcohol after each cut in case there is any bacterial or fungal material involved. If possible, ease the root ball out of its container and check on the condition of the roots and the level of moisture in the soil. I would also discontinue the removal of healthy leaves.

A few other thoughts:

• Misting has no significant effect on humidity. Let the humidifier handle that.
• Cider/vinegar traps work in controlling fruit flies. Regular water with a few drops of cooking oil should work for fungus gnats.
• The center of an already relatively dark room may not be the best location for the plant.

 

Good day - thank you for following up on this case.

I believe that I am definitely combating overly wet soil conditions (despite minimal full-waterings). This particular plastic pot has holes in the sides, but not the bottom; pretty sure that in my first waterings, a collection had built up on the bottom (where it doesn't reach the side drain-holes).

Re-Potting?
As of now, I think it's fair to say that it is sufficiently watered for 4 weeks (or more...?), and the next step will be repotting and tending to any rotten roots. Something to do during this Winter? or wait 2-3 months for Spring?

Possible Rot-Sign?
I've attached a photo of a spot + scar on the stem (or branch) in question. Do you recognize this exterior blemish?
If I were to "prune back the top of the stem to a point where it is still healthy and solid," would this be chopping off the entire stock (beginning the stem/branch a new)?
(I may also be incorrectly referring to a branch as a stem... my plant would have 2 stems with 3 branches each; the photo attached shows one of the three branches).

Thank you again for your correspondence!

 

Under the circumstances I would transfer the plant into a container with proper drainage holes as soon as possible. You could always delay doing so should it turn out the roots are healthy when you take the plant out of the container. Make sure the new soil that you use has a sufficient mix of materials to make it porous. Supplement the mix if necessary with additional material such as perlite and calcined clay.

The new photo shows to me what appears to be a scar rather than rot. So I would proceed to prune back progressively as described before, removing all material that has become mushy.

If you're not already so, use a watering regimen in which the soil is allowed to dry somewhat between watering. Never water on a schedule.

 

Understood. I will look into re-potting. (I had a feeling that it would ultimately come to this.)
The leaves appear to be maintaining strength and vibrancy despite the recent changes.

One last question before putting this thread to rest and giving ourselves some time to grow:

Though I'm not experiencing any mushiness on the stems, I do have a few leaves showing signs of drying-out on the sides.
I've attached a photo of the kind of stresses occurring on about 5 leaves.
Any suggestions on repairing or removing this 'flanking-dryness?'

Your time and attention have been wicked helpful this week - thank you again,
-J.g

 

Are these bottom leaves or fairly new ones? The oldest leaves will always dry up and die - you can either wait until they look terrible, or pull them off when you don't want to see them any longer.

 

This plant, and Dracaena in general, are sensitive to fluorine and chlorine in the water which causes necrotic regions in the leaves. However this plant does not have signs of that damage as the leaves appear to be healthy as seen in the first two photos. The damage you noted may be from physical contact or are simply the leaves being old, as suggested by @wcutler.

 

...well, it appears the shedding has been done for us.

After removing the tree from a bathroom "steaming," the final leaves began to tear away.
(Does moisture from the shower lead to necrotic regions due to chemicals in the water? I've several articles pointing to shower humidity as being okay for Dracaena...)

I noticed the remaining shoots of the struggling branch showed wrinkles, and the remainder of the leaves lost their integrity at their stems.
I've attached 2 more photos: the leafless stem, and its final leaves.

The leaves themselves were of healthy color and durability. It appears their stems tore away at from the core.

So... any recommendations on the next move?

Would this be a case of taking the sheers and giving it a good 45-degree angle to create a new shoot?

 

If indeed the stem is rotting then the leaves on that stem would eventually be shed anyway. I would proceed with cutting back the stem in search of healthy growth, as described earlier. I've never seen anything other than 90 degree cuts on these plants in the stores so I suggest you follow suit. After doing so, allow the cut to dry then seal it with some melted wax to prevent stem dessication.

 

All things considered, this is probably-definitely for the best.

I'll get some wax and make the cut in the next few days.

Thanks again for all your contributions. There are a lot of articles out there, but nothing is more effective than having a second pair of eyes.
-J.g

 

It occurred to me that I may have misinterpreted your statement. Were you thinking of cutting off the entire stem at the point where it branches from the main stem then propagating it? That's an option but you would still have to remove the rotting section at the top.

 

I definitely want to keep the other 2 branches from this stem. They appear to be increasing in strength and are healthier looking now than 3-weeks ago when I started making environmental changes (such as bringing the tree upstairs, away from the drafts of Winter, to the warmest & brightest location in the apartment).

I'm thinking of giving it a cut just under the location of that scar.

That will bring this branch to be midway between the 2 other branches. I'm not ready to attempt propagation on this tree yet.

(I'm also currently attempting to propagate new life to 3 Ti Plant branches, salvaged from a larger tree I had difficulty maintaining due to traveling, weather conditions, and general lack of attention/knowledge. But this could be another thread altogether! At the moment, in a vase of water, working towards growing new roots.)

All digressions aside, I'm gonna hit the hardware store this morning for some paraffin wax before making the cut later this afternoon.

Research online continues to point to an angled cut, to prevent disease - however, the specific *where* in regards to these statements is usually omitted...

Do we still feel safe with a 90-degree cut, just under the spot + scar mark, to remove the now-useless nod?

 

I believe an angled cut is recommended so that any moisture falling on the cut will not accumulate. However I suspect 90 degree cuts are done on this type of plant to minimize the cut's surface area thereby minimizing moisture loss from the cut. This ties in with wax being applied as a sealant. Of course this is speculation on my part.

 

Good morning! It's an underwhelmingly rainy, 40-degrees here in Chicago today, but we're feeling good about the progress made on our Dracaena!

In the past 48 hours, the dying nod spread in size, reaching down to the spot + scar (see photo attached).

This morning, I clipped about 1.5 centimeters below the scar (or possible rot). I chose to clip at a 45-degree based on 3 articles and 2 videos.

(I did find one video in which the cut was a straight 90-degrees, but this was in regards to a long stem and not its branch. Video examples showed several users cutting branches at the 45-degree angle, typically, as they were using the top/healthy branch for propagation.)

After making the cutting, we were met with the glad tidings of a fresh, green inner branch (see photo attached). Research has pointed to the fact that had our cut revealed brown, we would be dealing with something more dramatic.

I wasn't able to get my hands on paraffin wax, so I used a basic, unscented tea-light candle and a small brush to seal the opening (see attached photo). About 15-minutes are so after making the cut, the original cut did not contain any additional moisture and felt healthy to the touch.

Throughout the week of our correspondence, regular misting on the leaves has helped improve their color and reduced the brown tips.

I think, save a total nosedive, we're in good shape to let the tree do some healing and regeneration!

I'll follow up again when we begin to see growth.

You're attention to this thread, tree, and myself have been among the most effortlessly helpful experiences I've had in a long while.
Thank you for your contributions, knowledge, and 10-years of sharing advice in this UBC forum.

Next time I'm in Vancouver, lunch on me!

 

Sounds like the surgery was a success but time will tell. Look forward to your follow up report. Good luck.

 

72 hours later... we may not be out of the clear.

I'll give it another couple days before posting another photo, but it appears that since making the cut, the top 1/2 inch of the branch has begun to sink into itself a little bit. Not totally mushy at the moment, but definitely soft and beginning to prune/wrinkle.

So many videos show people cavalierly making cuts to branches and stems saying "they'll grow back," but none point to any follow-up effects on cuts made...

Is this common after making a cut?

 

After looking more closely at the two photos of the cut stem I noticed there's a difference in color that goes half way down from the top just above the bend. I'm wondering if the cut needs to be made just below the bend so as to remove the paler portion of the stem. You may want to see what happens after this, whether the shriveling continues and whether there's an increase in the size of the paler portion.

 

I think I'm going to give that a shot. Perhaps the cut was too close to the top. In the last 24 hours alone, the shriveling has increased somewhat dramatically (see attached photo).

I don't foresee a great recovery from this condition. In the effort to not allow much more energy to be sent to this shriveled branch, I'm gonna make a new cut a 1/2 inch beneath where the paler portion meets the darker.

As for mushiness, the branch itself (including the pale section) is still pretty firm (as are the others), but that top shriveled nod is definitely sinking into itself.

EDIT: Repeating our procedure as it was a few days ago, I've attached another photo of the new cut. I've noticed an outer ring around the center of the branch... is this normal, or a sign of something not-good?

 

I think this cut looks healthier than the one before as distinct layers can be seen, particularly the green one. Once again, fingers crossed.

 

Gotcha. We'll give it a few days and see how she tempers.

I'm also gonna give the humidifier a break for a few days to help reduce moisture that may lead to further damage. (Unless you don't think the humidifier/moisture is the issue)...

 

I don't think it would hurt to discontinue using the humidifier; this plant is not that particular when it comes to that. Have you verified the humidity level in your room with a hygrometer?

 

Good day,

5 days later, we're seeing the same wrinkling at the new cut (see attached photo).

I now recognize this behavior, having seen it in my 5-stem Money Tree.

• 1 of the 5 stems, when I purchased the Money Tree from the store, had this kind of wilting and hallowing out from the middle.
• I eventually removed that stem, which easily detached itself from the soil, and did not affect the other 4-braided stems.

Given that this behavior is developing in a branch of a stem, leads to concern about that spreading through the center nod and affecting the 2 other branches that share this branch.

Alternatively, perhaps this is necessary for the tree to wilt a little before coming back to life?

Thinking in more dramatic, but maybe necessary terms, should we go for the propagation of the remaining healthy branches - removing them from the potentially compromised stem?

Or, does this definitely look like a situation in which re-potting and cutting away rotten roots would lead to a cure of this condition?

 

I would not touch the other two branches unless the condition begins to show itself in the main stem. At this point you could either prune off the remaining stub or wait to see if the shriveling will eventually stop. Did you ever get a chance to check the root system for rot? We don't know for sure whether there is any.

 

The shriveling has begun to wrinkle downwards into the stem. The branch + stem, though shriveled, are not necessarily soft. I think within 24-48 hours we'll know if the wrinkling will be spreading up into the 2-connecting branches.

I haven't lifted the tree out of the pot yet and have climatically missed the best window, as we are now dealing with 20-30-degrees + snow & rain in Chicago.
(Trying to avoid having to lay a tarp in the bathtub and transplanting in an upstairs bathroom rather than an outdoor patio... but it may be what it is.)