I've just bought a Madagascar Dragon Tree, but its not in the best condition. It was cheap so I bought it because I felt sorry for it and wanted the challenge. Problem is I don't quite know exactly how to care for it. I know the basics, e.g. watering, but do I need to do something extra to revive it? The leaves are paler than they're supposed to be, and their tips are brownn. Help would be highly appraciated. Thanks
Dracaena spp. really prefer to be watered with rain water or spring water rather than municipal water. Even if you don't have fluoride or chlorine or chloramine there are usually other things used to treat the water that can cause leaf tip browning. It is probably dormant now anyway, so I'd hold off on fertilizer and limit water to when the soil is dry down a knuckle's depth. Sometimes older faded dracaena in pots are rootbound. Is this an issue? Do you see roots coiled around the soil surface at the top? Are thick roots crowding out of the drainage holes in the bottom? If that's the case, you can repot now, but otherwise you are better to wait until early spring.
