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Plant of the Week
Red-Edged Dracaena
Latin: Dracaena Marginata
One of the most dramatic houseplants is the red-edged dracaena, or as it is
sometimes called, the Madagascar dragon tree.
This striking plant has a bold and architectural outline that looks at home in
an modern museum of art or anyplace there is a blank wall against which it can
be displayed. Not only does it have a unique form, but it’s also easy to grow
and tolerates interior conditions without flinching.
The red-edged dracaena, a member of the century plant family, is from the
tropical island nation of Madagascar off of the east coast of Africa. It has
only been cultivated in this country since the 1930s but it was grown in
European greenhouses during the Victorian era. It has gray, rope-like stems that
can grow to 8 feet tall with each stem having a topknot of linear leaves 12
inches long. The leaves are green with a red margin. The plant can be quite long
lived in the home and becomes more picturesque with age as the stems take on
unique character.
Dracaenas hold a bit part in the annals of Cold War craziness. In 1966, a New
York polygraph expert, Clive Backster, attached his polygraph leads to a
dracaena in his office and elicited a fright response when he had bad thoughts
towards the plants. In 1970, Russian scientists reported results of experiments
that identified an electrical field surrounding plants. In later work, they went
on to claim that people could communicate with plants telepathically and
proposed that, in the event of radio failure, Russian cosmonauts might be able
to communicate with plants back on earth. It was never explained how they would
teach the plants to understand Russian or how the squeals their electronic
equipment generated when attached to the plants could be converted into the
spoken word.
This spurred a series of bizarre experiments around the world. One reported
study "demonstrated" that plants, when allowed to observe a mutilation of one of
their own kind, had memory and could identify a "plant murderer" when he entered
a room but would show no response to innocent parties. Another study found that
vegetables showed a fear response and "fainted" just before being dropped in
boiling water. Obviously, just as many humans have a an instinctive fear of
snakes, vegetables must have an instinctive fear of boiling water! All of this
polygraph testing was put to rest when British researchers demonstrated that the
same kinds of polygraph readings could be elicited when a wet rag was
substituted for a plant. Alas, the testers were causing the response, not the
plants.
Red-edged dracaenas tolerate interior conditions well. They are usually best
kept in a smallish container and somewhat on the dry side. Temperatures should
be kept above 45 degrees Fahrenheit. Plants tolerate low light, down to as low
as 30 foot candles, making them ideal for those dark corners away from the
windows.
In the summer, the plants can be moved outdoors and allowed to make some good
growth. Fertilize monthly with a houseplant fertilizer when growing conditions
are good. Mealybugs are the only serious pest on the plant.
By: Gerald Klingaman, retired
Extension Horticulturist
- Ornamentals
Extension News -
January 7, 2000
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