How to grow a dragon bone plant? A detailed guide to its care methods
SummarySoil: A mix of coarse sand and leaf mold can be used to prepare the soil, with a small amount of decomposed chicken manure added as a base fertilizer. Watering: The dragon bone plant is drought-tolerant; water once every 10-15 days in spring and autumn, once every 5 days in summer, and in winter it can go 1-2 months without watering. Light: Apart from avoiding strong light in summer, it can be grown in full sun in all other seasons. Fertilizing: Apply a nitrogen fertilizer once every 30 days during the growth stage. Pests and diseases: Pay attention to preventing and controlling anthracnose and scale insects.
I. Care Methods for the Dragon Bone Plant
1. Choosing Soil
The dragon bone plant likes to grow in fertile, loose, humus-rich sandy soil with good air permeability and drainage. For cultivation, you can mix leaf mold with coarse sand and add a small amount of decomposed chicken manure fertilizer as a base fertilizer.
2. Appropriate Watering
The dragon bone plant is a drought-tolerant plant, so it should not be watered too much. In spring and autumn, water once every 10-15 days; in summer, water once every 5 days; in winter, the dragon bone plant stops growing, and even if it is not watered for 1-2 months, its normal growth will not be affected.
3. Plenty of Light
The dragon bone plant needs plenty of light during its growth period. Apart from the strong light of summer, it can receive full sun in spring, autumn and winter. The more light it gets, the more vigorously it grows. In summer, shade it promptly; if the light is too strong, it can easily cause the plant to turn yellow. In winter, it can be moved indoors to a spot with plenty of light for care.
4. Reasonable Fertilizing
During the growth of the dragon bone plant, a nitrogen fertilizer can be applied about once every 30 days. You can also make your own pure natural fertilizer: crush peanuts or soybeans and bury them in the flower pot for care.
II. Preventing and Controlling Pests and Diseases
1. Anthracnose
If the dragon bone plant is infected with anthracnose, spots will form on the plant's fleshy stems. The spots are 2-3 cm in diameter, unevenly round, grayish-brown in the early stage and turning grayish-white later. When anthracnose infection is found, promptly cut off the diseased parts and apply a copper oxychloride solution to the wounds once every 5 days.
2. Scale Insects
Scale insects mainly suck the sap of the dragon bone plant and affect the plant's growth. If there are relatively few scale insects, you can catch and kill them by hand. If there are relatively many scale insects, you can spray an omethoate solution for control. You can also spray a solution of laundry detergent mixed with water on the pests; laundry detergent mixed with water can block the scale insects' spiracles, causing them to die because they cannot breathe normally, but the plant should be rinsed promptly after killing the insects.
III. Propagation Methods
1. The common propagation method for the dragon bone plant is cuttings. You can select a branch 5-6 cm long from the mother plant of the dragon bone plant. Since the dragon bone plant has a lot of sap, after cutting it off you need to wrap the wound with plant ash, then place it in a cool, ventilated place to dry before carrying out the cutting.
2. You can insert the branch directly into the soil, then water the soil until moist, and place it in a cool, ventilated place for care. When the potting soil becomes relatively dry, water it in small amounts. The amount of water should not be too much during this period; if the soil is too moist, the wound will rot. As long as you get the watering amount right, it will generally take about 30 days to take root.