Dracaena marginata is a tree-like plant with a strong trunk. The height of the trunk sometimes reaches 3 m. At the end of the trunk there are foxes in the form of a beam. On young plants, they are raised up, gradually the leaves sag. The leaf has an elongated shape with a border around the edges, so the plant is also called bordered dracaena. The edging is either yellow or reddish. As the palm tree trunk grows, the lower leaves die off and fall off. Thus, a trunk is formed in the form of scales or scars. The plant is well adapted for office space and home growing conditions. The most common varieties of dracaena are: "Marginata", "Bent" or "Reflex", "Godsefa" or "Surculose", "Fragrant", "Deremskaya".
Dracaena Marginata: home care
Dracaena marginata comes in several varieties: Magenta, Bicolor, Tricolor and other subspecies. She is very easy to care for. The plant feels good at +21°C. In winter, the plant does not like soil overflow. It is enough to water once a week, the main thing is that the soil does not dry out. In the summer, the plant is watered abundantly, in the heat it is necessary to spray the leaves. It is necessary to protect the plant from drafts in winter: if the palm tree is standing on the window, it is recommended to cover it from cold air currents during ventilation. Dracaena does not like when dust accumulates on the leaves. It can be removed with a damp swab or by rinsing in the shower. To prevent the soil from being washed away during such a “bathing”, the pot is wrapped with oilcloth. The palm tree is transplanted every 2-3 years into a larger pot, carefully so that the roots do not suffer. Soil must be bought special for dracaena. Periodically it is recommended to loosen the soil in a pot, the plants grow better.
Dracaena marginata: leaf tips dry
It should be remembered that the bay of palm trees, combined with a low room temperature, leads to the death of the bush. But there are often other problems with the dracaena plant: the tips of the leaves are dry. Also, spots may appear on the leaves in any part of them. The leaves of the plant dry for the following reasons:
- Bright lighting in the room where the dracaena stands: the tips of the leaves dry. It is necessary to provide diffused light. In this case, the leaves will keep bright juicy for a long time. Colour. In dark places, bright artificial lighting should be connected.
- Low air humidity in the room where the dracaena grows: the tips of the leaves dry. It is necessary to spray a palm tree only in a warm period. In winter, it is better to turn on the humidifier.
- Small pot in which there is an adult dracaena: the tips of the leaves dry. In this case, it is better to transfer the palm tree to a larger pot and renew the top layer of the earth. Brown weeping spots are the result of sunburn.
- Dust on the leaves and in the pot where the dracaena grows: the tips of the leaves dry. In case of heavy pollution, it is necessary to rinse the leaves under the shower, with a small amount of dust, it is enough to wipe each leaf with a gauze swab moistened with water.
Can dracaena bloom?
If the plant is properly cared for, dracaena will delight with ball-shaped inflorescences. Each inflorescence contains very small flowers that resemble stars. Flowers are white, yellow and pink. During the day, the flowers are tightly closed, they open only at night. The aroma of a flowering plant resembles the smell of honey or lilac. Palm trees bloom only with proper care and systematic feeding with complex fertilizer.
Why do dracaena leaves turn black?
Flower growers sometimes face a problem: a young dracaena is planted - the tips of the leaves turn black. This problem occurs if the young plant has a poorly developed root system. The plant must be removed from the soil and placed in a container with settled water and activated charcoal added there. Do not let the water in the container turn sour. Activated charcoal prevents root rot. When a high-quality root system appears, the palm tree can be planted again. If an already middle-aged dracaena is planted, the tips of the leaves darken, which means that there was an overflow in a pot. With high humidity in the room, the earthen ball dries out slowly, so the leaves of the plant darken or blacken. Spots on the leaves also signal overflow or drought. They certainly won't disappear. To make the palm tree look neat, damaged leaves can be cut off. New young leaves grow quickly, the plant is completely renewed in a year.
Dracaena fertilizer
To keep the leaves from turning black, the dracaena needs to be fed on time. A sign that the plant does not have enough nutrients is the weak growth of young shoots in the dracaena marginata plant: home care is easy. The soil without humus and peat or heavy with clayey layers is unsuitable for dracaena. The soil should consist of equal parts of peat, sand, turf and leafy soil. If it is not possible to pick up such a mixture, it is recommended to purchase a special substrate for dracaena. If a young dracaena is fed, why do the tips of the leaves dry? This is an overdose of top dressing.
In case of an overdose of fertilizers, soil replacement is also necessary, as not only the leaves turn black, but also the roots rot. Feed the bush from March to Augustonce every two weeks. At this time, the dracaena is actively growing. You can use any complex fertilizer or top dressing for variegated forms.
Why did the dracaena leaves become dull?
If the leaves of a plant have faded, hung lifelessly, it means that the palm tree froze from a draft in winter. Such a plant can be saved. It is sprayed several times a day with warm water and placed in heat. If the room temperature dropped below 15 degrees Celsius, the roots of the dracaena could rot. In this case, you can save the bush only by propagating the apical stem. It is cut off and placed in a container with water, adding activated charcoal to it. After about three weeks, roots appear on the cuttings.
What should I do if the dracaena leaves fall sharply?
Dracaena leaf fall is also accompanied by rotting of the root system. This happens if the plant is systematically transfused, frozen and grown at a low temperature. You can save such a bush only by reproduction. To do this, cut off a he althy shoot about 10 cm long and root it in the manner described above.
Infectious diseases of dracaena
Diseases can manifest themselves as follows:
1. Light brown spots of a rounded shape with a light center on the leaves of the dracaena mean alternariosis - a fungal disease. The disease affects the leaves and stems of the plant. Over time, the affected areas turn black. The plant must be sprayed with a fungicidal preparation, for example, foundationol. Can be usedcopper-containing preparations: solution "Topaz" or "Oxyhom". Spraying is carried out 3 times every 10 days.
2. Light brown spots of an elongated rounded shape with a dark red border - heterosporosis. On top of the spots, an olive coating is formed, which consists of a fungus. Spraying with fungicides is required.
3. Large pale brown spotting, round or irregular in shape with a yellowish-green border - phyllostictosis. Later, small black dots appear on the affected areas. Older and adult leaves are more often affected. The plant is sprayed with fungicides.
4. If the leaves soften and rot, this is a bacteriosis. Spraying the plant with water will only aggravate the situation. The tips of the leaves turn brown. The spots on them are of a weeping nature, with a pronounced tendency to decay. A yellow layer forms between the infected rotting part and the he althy green part. Drops of liquid on stains form a film when dried. Such plants lag behind in growth and are not subject to treatment. To prevent the spread of the disease to other bushes, the affected dracaena are destroyed.
Dracaena affected by spider mites and other pests
Pests on the palm tree:
1. Scale insects on palm leaves resemble brown plaques. Insects suck out the juice of plants, they are mechanically destroyed by wiping with a swab with soapy water. Then the plants are sprayed with a 0.15% Aktellika solution.
2. thripsappear at high temperature and low humidity. The insect lays colonies on the underside of the leaf, and grayish-brown spots with a silvery sheen will appear on the upper side of the colony. The plant is treated with insecticidal preparations, for example, "Fitoverm", "Decis" or "Inta-vir".
3. The aphid infects the tops of the shoots and the underside of the leaves. Affected leaves curl, turn yellow and fall off. Plants are treated with the above insecticides.
Note. In order for young dracaenas not to rot the root system, it is recommended to add charcoal or activated charcoal to the pot. Drainage is laid at the bottom of the pot. Variegated forms of dracaena need brighter lighting than green-leaved varieties. Dracaena Marginata palm tree will always delight you with fresh bright greens all year round, care at home does not cause difficulties.
