Little devastated: I underestimated the resiliency of my Dracaena during a move. Even though it was put into the truck last and removed first when migrating homes within the same city, the ~30 minutes were enough to destroy all leaves. There is green at the tips of the stems - is this plant salvageable? Thank you. I water it with distilled water once per month, pot has drainage and I ensure the excess water pooling at the bottom is promptly removed. I've pruned all dead leaves.
I think it looks ok. It's not going to fill in where the leaves were. So do you want the long stems with leaves at top? Or do you want to start a new plant, cut off all the tops and either make separate plants from those tops or put them together into one pot? And then you can cut back the original plant to where you would like it to branch out and give it some time to see if it does that. I'm surprised that watering once a month is enough. Of course, overwatering is not good, but in a heated place, I'd expect it to have needed more water than that.
Thanks for the reply! My main priority now is to ensure that it survives. While starting a new plant is something I'd love to do (as this is becoming too big to be feasibly in most homes), I'm worried that cutting it now may introduce too much stress. Should I wait for the possibility of new leaves sprouting before trying to propagate it?
I have to let somebody else answer that. Me, I would do it now. It's going to have to adjust anyway, may as well do the adjusting to its new life. I think there is plenty of life left in the tops. And these things will root with no leaves at all. Just push the cuttings (20-25cm long) into soil. I don't remember how long it takes for new shoots to appear, but I don't give up on anything until it actually rots away.
You're right to keep the watering to a low regime - while it is nearly leafless, it won't be using a lot, and very wet soil is bad for Dracaenas as it encourages root rot. Let it get fairly dry before watering again!
@Michael F, I agree with what you say, and yet: a month between waterings? I'd wonder whether there are even roots. But if there will be new plants made in new pots with new soil, it doesn't matter. @Amir, you need to gauge the difference in weight before watering and after and not let it get lighter than it is with fresh soil before watering. But if the original plant will be cut back and kept to regrow, I'd pull it out of the pot and just check what the roots look like.
My experience with Dracaena marginata is that it is almost impossible to kill it by underwatering. I've seen specimens sitting untended for months in lightless corners of offices, and they never seem to die. My own specimen only gets watered indoors when I notice that the soil looks completely dry, and I don't check it very often. It has been growing for at least 30 years (regenerated from the top twice) and has never shown any signs of being too dry.
Thank you for your advice, everyone! It's much appreciated and a relief to know that it's not a lost cause. So right now the plan is the following: 1. Going to purchase a nice pair of prunes (the stalks are about an inch thick - will prunes suffice?); 2. I will prune all four stems and will cut ~25cm from the top for each. They will be cut at 45 degree angles; 3. I will put all four into separate pots with new, moist soil. Is there anything I'm missing from this process? I believe I've captured everything.
Correction: Lopping shears instead of prunes. I will be using the following site as a guide: https://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/earthkind/landscape/proper-pruning-techniques/
Indeed! Dried plums wouldn't work well ツ Allow the cut surfaces to dry off and start to form a callus for a couple of days, that reduces the risk of fungal diseases.
Thank you! I did it last night and immediately transferred them into a container with shallow water. I reduced the risk of disease by 1. cleaning the shears and container with bleach and 2. filling the container with distilled water. Will that suffice or should I remove them to allow the ends to dry off?
The water won't do anything useful. I have been told that any roots that would start in water aren't the roots you need in soil. Dry them off and take Michael's advice. I've never waited, but I would defer to him.
