webblime
Newly Registered
Posts: 1
Joined: Thu May 05, 2016 9:09 pm

Help with dracena corn plant!!

I bought it around feb this year and it stayed rather healthy till about a little more than a month ago where leaf tips started getting brown, and eventually the whole leaves turn brown, the leaves would break in the middle too. Not sure if I'm overwatering or underwatering because the soil always feels dry to the touch no matter how much I water. Also, I spotted several white cottony stuff on the leaves and in between the area where the leaves join- I'm not sure if those are mealy bugs. Oh!! The area where the leaves attach to the thick stem also has rings of brown, like in the picture attached. As of now, I just trimmed off quite abit of the leaves that have turned brown and would really appreciate some help:(( hopefully my plant is not completely dead yet and there's a way to revive it. :cry:
Attachments
image.jpeg

imafan26
Mod
Posts: 13961
Joined: Tue Jan 01, 2013 8:32 am
Location: Hawaii, zone 12a 587 ft elev.

white cottony stuff could be mealy bugs or cottony cushion scales. The plant needs to go outside and get a good power wash from a hose. Insecticidal soap or horticultural oil will kill them but you need good coverage, they like to hide in the leaf axils. You will have to be diligent and keep after them until they are gone. I think you may be over watering. It is a fairly forgiving plant. Brown tips can be salt burn especially if you are using hard water and you don't flush the pot at least once a week. If the base of the stem is not soft it is not rotting.
Repot in good soil. I would remove some of the soil around the root ball but not take it all off. I just trim it down so I can get it back in the same pot. Make sure your pot drains well. Do not over water or let water sit in the cache pot, take it outside in the early morning once a week and flush and drain it well and hose the dust off the leaves. Don't leave it outside or it will burn. You can dry it in a tub with a fan on, in a garage, or shady spot. Fertilize with a slow release fertilizer like osmocote a teaspoon every 6 months.

P.S. Dracena massangeana is a weed here. it does bloom, and if you don't want the pollen flying around, cut off the spikes before the flowers start to shed pollen. Don't cut it off too soon, or the plant will try to make another. If it keeps blooming, give it more nitrogen, to inhibit bloom and make it grow leaves instead. When it gets too tall, lop off the branch, callous the end and remove most of the leaves and plant to start another one.



Return to “Container Gardening Forum”