Dracaena
Sources last read 14 September 2026.
Middling It gives warning, with time to act.
Also called Corn Plant, Cornstalk Plant, Dragon Tree, fragrant dracaena, Janet Craig Plant, Ribbon Plant, Striped Dracaena, Striped Dragon Palm, Warneckei Dracaena and Warneckii.
Dracaena is toxic
- Toxic to cats. Toxic principle: Saponins. Clinical signs: Vomiting (occasionally with blood), depression, anorexia, hypersalivation, dilated pupils (cats). ASPCA
- Toxic to dogs. Toxic principle: Saponins. Clinical signs: Vomiting (occasionally with blood), depression, anorexia, hypersalivation, dilated pupils (cats). ASPCA
- Toxic to people. Harmful when eaten by pets (dogs, cats, rabbits, rodents). RHS
What the sources say about its care
Sources file this plant under other names: Dracaena fragrans cv. Massangeana (Clemson Extension). Citations below point at the name its source uses.
- Light
- Medium light 100–150 fcClemson Extension, filed as Dracaena fragrans cv. Massangeana · read 11 September 2026Full sun, Partial shadeRHS · read 11 September 2026
- Water
- Moist but well-drainedRHS · read 11 September 2026
- Humidity
No source read publishes a humidity figure for any plant on this site. What follows is general guidance for foliage plants.
ASHRAE recommends indoor relative humidity between 30% and 60% 30–60%Penn State Extension · read 11 September 2026- Temperature
How cold this tolerates, not what it prefers. No source read for this site publishes a preferred range for a plant indoors.
H1B — 10–15°C 10–15 °CRHS · read 11 September 2026- Soil
- Loam, Sand; pH Acid or Alkaline or NeutralRHS · read 11 September 2026
- Toxic to cats
- ToxicASPCA · read 11 September 2026
- Toxic to dogs
- ToxicASPCA · read 11 September 2026
- Harmful to people
- Harmful when eaten by pets (dogs, cats, rabbits, rodents).RHS · read 11 September 2026
How it usually goes wrong
- Brown tips on the newest blades first
Blades on the side of the dracaena nearest a heater or vent brown at the edges while those on the far side stay clean.
Penn State Extension cites ASHRAE's recommended indoor range of 30% to 60% relative humidity; a heated room in winter drops below it. Air that dry pulls water from the leaf faster than the roots replace it, and the margins are furthest from the supply.
Telling it apart: Where the plant stands. Browning concentrated on the side facing a heater points at the air.
Penn State ExtensionDracaena brown leaf tips and edges: causes- New blades arrive smaller and paler than the ones below
Compare this year's growth on the dracaena with last year's: new blades are smaller, thinner and a paler green, and the gap below each one is longer.
Light is the budget every other process is paid from. Under the medium light its source names, the plant spends down reserves and shows it in thin, pale growth.
Telling it apart: What the newest growth looks like beside the oldest. Light changes what arrives next; feeding changes what is already on the plant.
Clemson ExtensionDracaena leaves turning yellow: causes- Soft yellow leaves low on the plant, soil still wet
On a dracaena the yellowing climbs from below. Affected blades feel limp rather than papery, and water sits in the saucer long after it drains through.
Its source calls for soil that is moist but well-drained. Past that, water in the pot displaces the air the roots need, and damaged roots then fail to supply the blades above them.
Telling it apart: Whether the compost has dried at all since the last watering. A pot that has not dried in a fortnight is answering the question on its own.
RHSDracaena leaves turning yellow: causes
Not sure which it is? Ask the diagnosis questions for Dracaena.
Routine care
- Watering
- During the growing season keep the soil moist; water less in winter. It is sensitive to fluoride and salt buildup, so if the leaves brown, use water without fluoride and flush out salts once a month.NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026In the growing season, water moderately and feed monthly with a balanced liquid feed; give little water in winter.RHS · read 13 September 2026
- Feeding
- Through the growing season, give moderate water and a monthly balanced liquid feed; in winter water sparingly.RHS · read 13 September 2026
- Repotting
- Move it to a bigger pot once it begins rising out of its pot or roots appear through the drainage hole.NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026In spring, top dress or move to a larger pot.RHS · read 13 September 2026
- Propagation
- Use stem cuttings to propagate.NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026Sow seed in spring at 20°C. In summer, use bottom heat to root semi-ripe cuttings as well as stem sections without leaves.RHS · read 13 September 2026
- Pruning
- Pruning is not needed, but in spring weak stems can be cut back to 15cm and the removed piece used as a cutting for a new plant.RHS · read 13 September 2026
- Pests and diseases
- Can be troubled by longtailed mealybug and other mealybugs, banded greenhouse thrips and fern scale.NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026Mealybugs, thrips, glasshouse red spider mite and scale insects can attack it. Disease is uncommon.RHS · read 13 September 2026
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Photographs
About the plant
Dracaena fragrans, is a flowering plant species that is native to tropical Africa, from Sudan south to Mozambique, west to Côte d'Ivoire and southwest to Angola, growing in upland regions at 600–2,250 m (1,970–7,380 ft) altitude.
From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · read 13 September 2026
- Native range
- Trop. AfricaWorld Checklist of Vascular Plants, June 2026 release, CC BY.Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026Tropical AfricaNC State Extension · read 13 September 2026Tropical AfricaRHS · read 13 September 2026
- Climate
- seasonally dry tropicalWorld Checklist of Vascular Plants, June 2026 release, CC BY.Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026
- Growth form
- shrub or treeWorld Checklist of Vascular Plants, June 2026 release, CC BY.Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026Perennial, Shrub; habit erect, multi-trunkedNC State Extension · read 13 September 2026Columnar upright (evergreen)RHS · read 13 September 2026
- Size
- Height 36–174 in; width 12–36 inNC State Extension · read 13 September 2026Height 1.5-2.5 metres; spread 0.1-0.5 metres after 2–5 yearsRHS · read 13 September 2026
- Flowering
- Flowers pink, red/burgundy, whiteNC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
Common problems with Dracaena
Other Dracaena
Lucky bambooCrisp margins that appear in winter
Snake plantBlades hang and feel thin between the fingers
African SpearSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
Dracaena bacularisSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
Dracaena reflexaSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
Gold Dust DracaenaSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
More of the Asparagaceae family
Asparagus fernBrown brittle margins with a green centre
Cast iron plantBlade tips go crisp and brown
HyacinthFlowering stops while the foliage carries on
Ponytail palmBlades hang and feel thin between the fingers
Spider plantEdges of the blades brown while the middle stays sound
Spineless yuccaBlade tips go crisp and brown
Plants with similar care
Sources
- ASPCA · read 11 September 2026
- Clemson Extension · read 11 September 2026
- Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026
- NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
- Penn State Extension · read 11 September 2026
- RHS · read 13 September 2026
- Wikipedia · read 13 September 2026
What this does not cover
The figures above are what published sources say, not measurements of the plant in your room. They say nothing about your pot size, your water, the season, or how far from the glass the plant stands, and those decide more than any figure here does.
Humidity has no species figure because no source read for this site publishes one, and the only temperature published for this plant is a cold floor. The simulator fills those gaps with general figures for its kind of plant, marked as general and listed on how we read sources. Where a toxicity row says the plant was not assessed, that is the absence of a finding and not a finding of safety.
If something is already wrong, the diagnosis tool asks about the soil, the window and the watering, which is where the answer usually is.