Hi,

I overwatered my dragon tree. All his leaves fell off at once and branches started to bend. I took him out of container and wrapped in newspaper to dry out soil for a few days. Branches have hardened up a bit and he is back in pot now. Do I need to cut the top of branches off? Or just leave him alone a bit longer. He has sentimental value and I'm gutted I made such a careless mistake!?! Any advice appreciated!!

I have grown this. It is immensely trimable. Cut it back to healthy tissue, nice and firm. It will resprout.

Make sure drainage hole in the bottom of the pot is not blocked. I would get it into fresh soil. Only water when top 1/2" or so of soil is dry.

not a dragon tree


too wet cut back

repot and allow it to dry out inbeween waterings

Dracaena marginata, common name Dragon Tree.

As this post is a month old, the Dragon Tree is probably cut back and repotted by now.

or dead.

zylvert said: not a dragon tree


too wet cut back

repot and allow it to dry out inbeween waterings

What is it?? I cut him back over 3 weeks ago now, and no shoots. I had already repotted him, soil bone dry. A couple of days ago I put the pot in a bucket of water to let him drink if needed. He is now in bathroom to get moist air. I found another young one in liddl... Is this him? Anything else I can do to get him to shoot?

That's the plant.
One of the stems looks shriveled. Gently pinch it, if it feels 'squishy' remove it. If the main stem feels that way, at least at the bottom, then the whole plant is dead.If it still feels good all the way to the bottom, put it in the brightest, warmest place you can, keep it barely moist, and wait patiently for new shoots. It will take several more weeks to see any new growth.

CPPgardener said:That's the plant.
One of the stems looks shriveled. Gently pinch it, if it feels 'squishy' remove it. If the main stem feels that way, at least at the bottom, then the whole plant is dead.If it still feels good all the way to the bottom, put it in the brightest, warmest place you can, keep it barely moist, and wait patiently for new shoots. It will take several more weeks to see any new growth.

Oh my gad that's great news!?! I'd lost hope. All the branches are rock hard, even the squishy looking one. They were squishy but I took him out of pot, kept all same soil around him, and wrapped him in news paper till he dried out.

I took the plunge to cut him back after first reply here, thanks for that. But no sign of shots after 3 weeks so moved to bathroom.

I'll put him in the front South facing window. Should I put the pot in a bucket of water for 30 mins once a week, or is that too much again? He was in a house with no heating in winter when I watered him, that's how he got over watered in first place

BigBill said:I have grown this. It is immensely trimable. Cut it back to healthy tissue, nice and firm. It will resprout.

Make sure drainage hole in the bottom of the pot is not blocked. I would get it into fresh soil. Only water when top 1/2" or so of soil is dry.

Sorry, never thanked you for your reply BigBill!! I was too busy trying to save Draco!?! Still checking him daily for shoots

Once the soil is hydrated, you should be able to water until some comes out the bottom of the pot. Water when the soil feels dry about an inch down and then water the entire surface, not just in one spot. Don't let it sit in a saucer full of water.

As I mentioned before, its a Dracaena marginata, common name Dragon Tree.

Yes, both plants are the Dragon Tree (Dracaena reflexa var. angustifolia) It was formerly classified as Dracaena marginata and I still call it by that name because I'm old and that's what I've known it as for 50+ years.

The stems on the plant that you've cut back appear to be dry and desiccated; I'd cut those stems back even more, a little at a time, to see if there's any viable green wood remaining. What type of soil are you using? To my eyes, it looks very dense and dry, which may be a problem.

I just went outside and cut a stem off of one of my dragon tree plants to show what you should be seeing on a viable stem. I scratched away some of the tan/brown bark so you can see the green, viable wood peeking out beneath.

The main plant where I lopped off the stem.



This is the top part of the stem that I removed and I'll stick it in soil to root a new plant.



I have a few Dragon Trees growing in my garden and also a few that I keep as container plants that stay out on my screened porch year round. I find them to be fairly drought tolerant and depending on the type of potting medium/soil being used and how quickly it dries at root level should determine how often you will need to water. You should try to keep the soil barely moist, not overly wet and not extremely dry for too long. If the soil at root level remains too wet, the roots will suffocate and die. I always err on the dry side with my plants.

I forgot to say, they sometimes take a long time to push out new growth which will appear just below the cut area.

plantladylin said:I forgot to say, they sometimes take a long time to push out new growth which will appear just below the cut area.

• Dragon Tree (Dracaena reflexa var. angustifolia)
• Uploaded by plantladylin

• Dragon Tree (Dracaena reflexa var. angustifolia)
• Uploaded by plantladylin

All bits looking green! Do I just leave him alone now in the sunny window for a few weeks? Think it's just potting compost. One mug of water a week? I'm so afraid of overwatering him again

I forgot to mention, my Mum used to water him from the bottom. He would be put in a bucket of water. I've no idea how often she did this though! I was lazy and just gave him a cup of water now and again😬 he used to be really healthy. Should I go back to watering from underneath? Any suggestions howling to leave him in bucket, or how often to do it?


,

Underwatering is just as dangerous as overwatering. A mug a week is not watering, its teasing. Water when the soil feels dry about an inch down and water the entire surface (not just in one spot) until some comes out the bottom. Don't let it sit in water. It may take more than a week for the soil to dry an inch down again.

Hi All,

I wondered if you could help a fellow struggler. I water this about once a week, the soil feels dry now so I'll give him another water today, the leaves are dropping which suggests overwatering but then some of the leaves are starting to brown at the tip which apparently means it's being underwatered… how do I fix this?

Thanks

to the forum, Hcoe92!
Are the leaves "dropping" or drooping"?
Does the pot have a hole in the bottom? Roots need air as well as water and they can suffocate if there is no hole on the bottom.
How long has it been in that location? If it hasn't been there for a while, it may be losing unneeded leaves and is fine.
When you water does water come out the bottom? Make sure some does so you know it's moist all the way down.
Both over- and under-watering cause damage to the roots which causes brown tips. So does fluoride in the water.

Hi, sorry for the late reply, it had been in this position for a while, I've moved it into a lighter spot now downstairs but it doesn't seem to have made much difference. The leaves are still drooping quite a lot (hasn't lost or dropped any though) and it doesn't seem to be growing any new leaves (maybe I'm just impatient)

There is a drainage hole in the bottom and I water until it comes through the hole and then leave it until the soils dry before watering again.

Thanks

You are being impatient. It will take another month or two for the change to have an effect. The droopy leaves will stay that way.