Dracaena draco - Canary Islands dragon tree has distintive flat-topped appearance and regular arranged swollen branches make it instanty recognisable.
Dracaena draco also called as Canary Islands dragon tree, Asparagus draco, is a species of the Dracaena genus. This species was described by Carl Linnaeus in 1767. Its distinctive flat-topped appearance and regular arranged swollen branches make it instantly recognizable.
IDENTIFY DRACAENA DRACO - CANARY ISLANDS DRAGON TREE
Dracaena draco is native to the Canary Islands, Cape Verde, Madeira, western Morocco, and introduced to the Azores. Each island group has its own form. It grows on cliffs and slopes of ravines. It is the natural symbol of the island of Tenerife, together with the blue chaffinch.
It is a slow grower monocot. The straight trunk grows for about 10 years before flowering then producing its first ring of branches. About every 10 years thereafter, each axis gives rise to another ring, so the age of the tree can be estimated by counting the number of branching points to reach the canopy.
Canary Islands dragon tree is cultivated and widely available as an ornamental tree for parks, gardens, and drought tolerant water conserving sustainable landscape projects. It has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit. The dark red resinous sap that give the tree its common name is used for coloring vanishes and one time was also used for medicinal purposes.
DRACAENA DRACO - CANARY ISLANDS DRAGON TREE CARE AND CULTURE
Cultural information should only be used as a guide, and should be to be adapted to suit you. Your physical location; where you grow your plants, how much time you have to devote to their care, and many other factors, will need to be taken into account. Only then can you decide on the cultural methods that best suit you and your plants.
Light:
Dracaena draco should get bright sunlight throughout the year, whether grown indoors or outdoors. When it gets more full sun, it produces more brilliant, more attractive leaves. To encourage straight, upright growth, turn the pot occasionally. As with many plants, it grows toward the light.
Temperature:
As a desert plant and a lover of hot and dry environments, the plants thrives at a temperature between 70 and 90 ° F. At soil or air temperatures less than 65°F, very little growth will occur. Plants will be damaged at 35°F air temperature if exposed for short periods, 1-2 days, or if exposed to 55°F for 1 week. To simply protect the plants from cold damage, a minimum of 50°F should be held and plants should be sheltered from wind. Temperatures below 50°F, but above freezing, have been observed to cause chilling damage when plants are exposed to wind.
Humidity:
Preferably 50% or higher; however, they will tolerate lower levels without harm. In dry weather, spray your plant with soft water, clean the dust on the leaves: it will be all the more beautiful and you will protect it from red spiders.
Substrate and growing media:
Sphagnum peat, pine bark, vermiculate, or perlite (leach before using) can be volumetrically combined to formulate media for plants in smaller containers while media for larger plants may contain 10–20% coarse sand to keep plants from wind tipping. Media should have good moisture capacity and aeration, and pH of 6.0 to 6.5. A pH lower than 6.0 may cause leaf chlorosis while a media pH above 6.5 will cause iron deficiency.
At the end of winter every year, transplant your plant in a pot slightly larger than the current, with a mixture of garden soil and potting soil. If it is too big for potting, just scratch the top soil and add a layer of potting soil.
Watering:
During growth seasons (spring, summer), watering about once or twice a month, but controlled, to make sure the roots don't rot. In autumn, gradually reduce watering until winter. In winter allow the soil to dry between watering. The growth will cease during the winter months, limiting the need for watering.
Fertilizer:
They are moderate feeders especially when grown under high light. Reduce feeding if grown in shade. In summer, add liquid fertilizer for green plants every 2 weeks. You can also add slow release fertilizer pellets to the soil mix when planting or repotting. Stop all fertilizer treatments at the end of summer.
Pruning:
Remove the withered leaves from the plant to help expose more of the attractive trunk. Other than this cleanup, the plant does not require grooming.
If you want to check for stem health, you can scrape the exterior with a knife. Don’t go too deep. Just enough until you see a green or brown color. Green means healthy while brown can signify disease.
Propagation:
Dracaena draco is propagate from seeds. The seeds (orange berries) are about 3/4″ inch long and require sowing individually in small pots. Use sandy soil and keep it moist, but avoid oversaturating the soil. For the seeds to germinate, keep the pots in temperatures between 60° and 85° F. During this time, avoid bright, direct sunlight. Place the pots in a warm spot with part shade.
The plant can also be propagated from cuttings. Cut a stem into individual sections of 7 to 8 inches. Place them in water and allow them to start developing white nodules around the base. That’s where the roots will spring out from.
Pests and diseases:
One of the main issues this plant is wet roots. If the soil doesn’t drain easily and the roots remain wet for a long time, the tree could die. Another way to spot disease is to look for branch discoloration or abnormal growth. This indicates diseased or dead branches.
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