My plant needs help...

11 years ago

Hello!

I will begin this post by saying that I don't have much of a green thumb and it takes a hardy plant to survive around my house for more than a year! With that said... I have had this indoor palm plant (tag on it says it's a dracaena) for about 4 years, and all has been going well, until recently. All of the sudden, half of the plant (or maybe it's two separate plants?) has started to grow sideways. It is still getting new grow at the normal rate and doesn't look unhealthy, other than growing in the wrong direction. Any thoughts on what is causing this? I rotate the plant about a 1/4 of a turn once a week so that it doesn't grow too far in one direction...but this doesn't seem to matter for what is currently going on. Any guidance would be much appreciated!

Thanks!

Michael

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Comments (5)

patton40
11 years ago
It is a draceana, not a palm. It is also known as dragon tree and yes they are known for growing in weird directions when they get bigger. That's what makes them interesting. Enjoy. I have one and love it!
User
11 years ago
Looks pretty good and healthy.
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tapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
11 years ago
The weak stems are a direct result of insufficient light, and if you're fertilizing with a fertilizer utilizing urea as its N source, that's not helping things. You can fix it by cutting the plant back at an appropriate time and repotting into a very fast-draining soil. Ask, if you want to learn how to improve the amount of reward you get for your efforts and provide better opportunities for your plants to realize the potential Mother Nature provided them with.

Al
Tiffany, purpleinopp Z8b Opp, AL
11 years ago
Agree, it's Dracaena marginata. I also like the wild Dr. Seuss look these can develop, and do things to my trees to cause contortions to the trunks on purpose. Being inside all of the time, where there is no wind blowing, also causes trunks to be less sturdy.

Trimming isn't necessary if you like the way it looks now, but if you're interested in investigating, the info & pics here could be a good place to start:

http://forums2.gardenweb.com/discussions/3011722/need-to-perform-surgery-help?n=6
Michael C
Original Author
11 years ago
Thanks everyone! Happy to know it's healthy! I don't mind the curves, just figured I was killing it somehow! Haha!