My wife has two indoor trees she inherited from her grandmother when she passed. I'm told these are over 20 years old. I'm not sure exactly what they are either. Some sort of Dracaena? They are about 8 feet tall with long green leaves at the top the leaves have a lighter green strip in the middle. The stem is thin and appears to be segmented. I've attached a photo. Both trees had browning leaves and the stems were quite flexible to where the tree would lean right over if allowed so I thought bringing them outside for better sun exposure and rain would be a good idea. Of course, I'm no botanist. :( One leaned over and the stem broke! It's not broken all the way through - maybe half damaged. Is there a way to heal this? Can I splint it and reinforce it so it will repair itself? I feel so bad right now as I was trying to help them and then this happens.
This break looks kinda bad, but it may do okay if you splint it. You might be able to air-layer it, also. And it's possible it will send out shoots just below the damage. I'd recommend cutting it off, perhaps about where the lower shoots growth would hide it. Cut it at an angle so moisture doesn't puddle on top of the cut. I would daily moisten the upper two inches or so for a cane this old, but you should see a few sprouting shoots in a month or so. The top part you cut off can be cut into two or more pieces, with one retaining the green leaves, cut in half. After a day or so of air drying, put an inch or so of the bottom of the canes into potting soil or damp sand. They should root. There's nothing stellar or sacred about these other than being from your wife's family. Dracaena fragrans 'Massangeana' is ubiquitous in office buildings everywhere.
