please help

I need some help please okay i don't have any pictures but here is the deal

I had this plant of my moms and anyway the top broke off and leave a stem with only 1 leave on it..

i had the top but then my cat tore it up so that's not an option

from the step and roots can i save my mom's plant?

if i can what would be the best way? to hope that it grows new leaves.. but it's a woody stem so i dont think that will work

or should i cut the step at the base and hope the roots grow again? and i have rooting compound but before i do anything i look for your guys advice


sorry i don't have any pictures and i dont know what the plants called but its got a woody stem and almost like a palm tree

any help is appreciated

i know it would be easier with pictures but i dont have any i'll be waiting for your guys help thank you

-tyyy

 

It is impossible to answer this question without knowing what plant is involved.

 

Google Picures of Dracaena, Cordyline, Parlor palm, and see if any of those look like your plant. If so tell us which one and we'll go from there. If not give us a better description.

 

okay i will post one

 

okay i think it is this one
http://static6.depositphotos.com/1038226/621/i/450/dep_6210010-House-plant-dracaena-palm-in-flower-pot-isolated.jpg

from this page
http://depositphotos.com/6210010/stock-photo-House-plant-dracaena-palm-in-flower-pot-isolated.html

the only difference is the stem thing is a lot longer and there is only one leaf on it but on the top it is growing like these little like openings or something where the stem is crackign it looks like another plant leaf set thing can come out of it maybe?
so that was what it loopked like now this is what it looks like a sad sight indeed.
http://i.imgur.com/KPOWh.jpg

http://imgur.com/Xzi21

this is a picture of the top where those little node things are growing in. I don't know what they're called but it used to grow different tops kinda like would be its own set of leaves i guess I would call it branches or something

the roots are in good shape i dont know what i should do to save it any help thanks

oh yea, thats my cat

 

Looks like Dracaena marginata 'Tricolor', Madagascar Dragon Tree. New growth will resprout from the top of the stem if the tree is healthy. That seems to be what is happening; look at the spot where George Washington is looking at in the last photo.

 

thx bro i'll post results i think i see some green in there!

im just gonna water it like usual i guess

 

I suggest cutting back to a minimum at this point, just enough to keep the soil moist.

 

One more thought...consider sealing the top of the stem with melted wax to prevent stem desiccation. I would make a clean cut then seal.

 

Don't seal the end of the cut stem, just trim it neatly. Dracs are great at regrowing. From the cut stem you may get one to four new starts. When mine get to leggy I simply cut the mother plant back to the desireable height. It will have to rely in it's roots for food until it gets new leaves. Then I use rootone on the parts cut off and plop them into potting soil, tent them with a loose plastic bag and spray them gently to keep the moisture around the leaves They restart quite well.

 

I hadn't considered this alternative to prevent desiccation. Aside from that purpose do you find there are benefits to using this method? Does it encourage more buds to sprout than otherwise?

 

Thank YOU Junglekeeper. I really messed that one up by simply putting the right directions in the wrong place. Yes, the added moisture would tend to rot the cut ends. (Lord I hate getting old and foggy) Trim the mother plant neatly and leave it alone. The mother plant will then put out new starts. I've had as few as one and up to four new shoots. Loosely tent the potted cuttings to keep in moisture. I have one marginata that produced four new starts. When they got leggy I cut off the tops and am waiting for the new growth. I am hoping for a multi branched candle holder effect when the new growth appears. Thanks again for catching my error. barb

 

can you guys put into lamen terms what you mean by cut the stem

if you see the pictures you mean cut the stem and then try to make a new plant with the cutting?

I leave it alone like you guys say but now those weird bumps i post pictures of, well now there is some on the top and on the side of the plant. They kinda look green in there I"m hoping that it will grow those tops like it had before it broke.


i just can't wait till it grows back and I can confirm it's for sure going to live because it looks sad over there

and not to mention the fact that when I was like um in school I bought that for my mom for valentines day

then she take care of it all the way when i went off to college!

now mom is like about to retire she gives me plant and what happen (duh stupid me) the top broke off now it looks half dead.

she seen it the other night but i'm gonna wait to make sure that it's going to live and then i'm going to tell her and let her knowt hat I saved it lol.

thanks guys im gonna post when it survives for sure

 

As Junglekeeper said - look at the side of the stem, about an inch from the top. Does it look like a bump or new growth is forming? If there is any indication of new growth leave everything alone. When I said trim the top I ment take a sharp knife and blunt cut the top of the stem. There is no real reason to do this - It just looks neater. In nature it would be left alone. barb

 

i don't know now it doesn't really look good

the one leaf that was left is kinda turning a little discolor and the little bumps at the top kinda stopped growing or like no branches come out..

so now should i cut the top of the stem off because it doesn't look like they are ever going to restart, fior a while it looked like some like branches would pop out of there but now it just stopped

i dunno i think about cut the top with a sharp knife and and i have some rooting stuff so i could try to make a new start out of that too. only problem really is there is no leaves left just the one

bah

i hope i don't kill my moms plant. She's had it forever and if this thing guys i'm a real pos.

i'll wait to see what you guys think is hould do at this point but the leaf is kinda discolored and the little "bumps" stopped in their tracks..

 

Looks like it is in a rather poorly lit spot - try putting it in a sunnier window where it will get more light.