Lucky Bamboo: Latest Growing Methods and Precautions Explained

Lucky bamboo (Dracaena sanderiana) originates from Cameroon in western Africa. It is a perennial evergreen herbaceous plant of the genus Dracaena in the family Asparagaceae, mainly grown as a potted ornamental plant. It has high ornamental value and symbolizes "great fortune and prosperity", which is also how it got its name. Below, the editor will introduce to you the growing methods and precautions for lucky bamboo!

Common varieties of lucky bamboo

There are 4 relatively common varieties of lucky bamboo, namely golden-heart lucky bamboo, silver-heart lucky bamboo, silver-edge lucky bamboo, and golden-edge lucky bamboo. Different varieties have different characteristics and are suitable as decorations for homes of different styles.

1. Golden-heart lucky bamboo: The plant is relatively stout, the leaves are dark green, and the middle part of the plant has green-yellow or golden-yellow longitudinal stripes.

2. Silver-heart lucky bamboo: Unlike golden-heart lucky bamboo, the center of the leaf has a silvery-white longitudinal stripe.

3. Silver-edge lucky bamboo: The leaves are green with a silvery-white broad band or border along the edge, very obvious and eye-catching.

4. Golden-edge lucky bamboo: Together with silver-edge lucky bamboo, it forms a pair of sister varieties; the difference is that the border along the leaf edge is golden-yellow.

Soil culture of lucky bamboo

Lucky bamboo likes shady, humid and high-temperature conditions, is tolerant of waterlogging, has strong fertilizer tolerance, and is strongly cold-resistant; it likes a semi-shaded environment. It is suitable for growing in well-drained sandy soil or semi-muddy sand and alluvial clay, and the suitable growing temperature is 20—28℃. It can tolerate a low temperature of 2—3℃, but frost must be prevented in winter. In the high-temperature and humid seasons of summer and autumn, conditions are very favorable for the growth of lucky bamboo, and this is its best growing period. It is not strict about light and is suitable for growing under bright scattered light. Too strong light or exposure to the sun can cause phenomena such as yellowing leaves, loss of green color, and slow growth.

When planting lucky bamboo in the field, a shade shed with a shade net 1.7—1.8 m high should be set up, with a shading rate of 75% being appropriate, to create an environment of half shade and half sun with scattered light. Especially from April to September, strong direct light, exposure to the sun, or excessive drought should be avoided; otherwise, it easily makes the leaf surface rough, scorched, and weak in growth, and the leaves lack luster, reducing ornamental value. During the growing season, the soil should often be kept moist, and water should often be sprayed or sprinkled on the leaf surface to increase air humidity; after heavy rain, standing water in the field should be drained to prevent lodging. In winter, attention should be paid to cold protection and frost prevention. When the temperature is below 10℃, the leaves will turn yellow and wither and fall into the mud. At this time, the soil should preferably be alternately dry and wet, but it should not be droughty, nor should it be too wet; watering should be reduced and fertilizing stopped.

Lucky bamboo has strong growth and strong ability to develop roots and sprout buds. It is often propagated by cuttings, and this can be done throughout the year as long as the temperature is suitable. Generally, leafless stem segments are cut as cuttings, 5—10 cm long, preferably with 3 nodes, and inserted into a sand bed or semi-muddy sandy soil. In the south, in spring and autumn, roots and buds can generally sprout in 25—30 days, and after 35 days they can be potted or transplanted to the field for cultivation.

Hydroponic culture of lucky bamboo

Lucky bamboo is one of the plants most suitable for hydroponics and is widely planted in countless households. When planted by water cuttings, it roots very easily, and care and management are relatively extensive. At a temperature of 18-28 degrees, it remains in a growing state throughout the year. Before putting hydroponic lucky bamboo into a vase, the leaves at the base of the cuttings should be removed, and the base should be cut into a slanted opening with a sharp knife. The cut should be smooth to increase the area for absorbing water and nutrients.

For lucky bamboo formed into plants by hydroponics using the root-washing method, you can see that the original soil-grown root system is orange-red, but during hydroponics the roots produced are indeed milky white; the red and white complement each other and are very beautiful. Lucky bamboo is elegant and fresh, evergreen in all four seasons, and carries the meaning of "bamboo reporting peace" and fortune and auspiciousness, and is deeply loved by people.

Hydroponic lucky bamboo likes stale water, and after rooting it should not be changed. After water evaporates and decreases, only timely water should be added. Frequent water changes easily cause yellow leaves and withered branches. To prevent excessive vertical growth, do not apply chemical fertilizer. It is best to inject a few drops of brandy into the bottle about every 3 weeks and add a small amount of nutrient solution, which can keep the leaves emerald green. Lucky bamboo avoids wind; do not place hydroponic lucky bamboo next to a television or in places exposed to air conditioning units or electric fans, so as to avoid dry and withered leaf tips and leaf edges.

What to do if lucky bamboo leaves turn yellow

In fact, there are many reasons why lucky bamboo leaves turn yellow, mainly divided into three aspects: water, light, and fertilizer. In these three aspects, going to any extreme can cause lucky bamboo leaves to turn yellow. Let's take a look together below.

1. Water-yellow and drought-yellow: To determine whether lucky bamboo leaf yellowing is water-yellow or drought-yellow, it can be judged from the different signs of leaf yellowing. Water-yellow leaves appear on tender leaves, while the old leaves have not turned yellow; drought-yellow old leaves wither and fall off, while new leaves grow relatively normally. After determining this, water can be increased or decreased according to the cause of yellowing.

2. Scorch-yellow and light-deficiency yellow: Similarly, too strong or insufficient light can also cause lucky bamboo leaves to turn yellow. The yellowing caused by too strong light is called scorch-yellow and appears as yellow spots on the parts of the leaves facing the sun; light-deficiency yellow is yellowing caused by insufficient light leading to insufficient chlorophyll synthesis, with the whole plant's leaves turning yellow and falling off, and it can be avoided as long as light is strengthened.

3. Fertilizer-yellow and fertilizer-deficiency yellow: Every plant needs fertilizer, and the concentration of fertilizer applied directly affects the plant's growth state. Just the right amount of fertilizer makes the plant grow strong, while too much or too little fertilizer can cause a series of problems, such as the phenomenon of lucky bamboo leaves turning yellow. Too much fertilizer makes new leaves thick and lusterless, while old leaves scorch yellow and fall off; the fertilizer should be washed away and removed. Insufficient fertilizer makes tender leaves become lighter in color, while old leaves gradually turn yellow; apply thin fertilizer additionally.

Precautions for growing lucky bamboo

1. In spring, cut the cut stems into leafless stem nodes 5 cm to 10 cm long, or cut the base tips, which easily dry out. For branches with stem tips grown in partially shaded indoor places over a long period, insert them into clean coarse river sand, water thoroughly, cover with a plastic bag, keep the substrate moist, place in a bright indoor spot, and they can root in about 25 days. Or insert the cut branches into water, and at 25℃ they can root in about half a month.

2. In the north, it is better to buy lucky bamboo in spring; after buying it, it immediately enters the suitable growing period. If there are heating facilities in winter, it can also be purchased before the New Year festival. For potted plants, choose robust plants with dark green, glossy leaves, bright golden-edge stripes, no dry tips, no bare lower stems, a plant height of 30 cm or less, and 3 to 6 branches. For hydroponically grown plants of various shapes, choose plants with uniformly thick stems, beautiful shapes, and no rot at the base or root system. In particular, note that lucky bamboo grows poorly in alkaline soil and dry climates, and the leaves also grow thin and weak, with dim, lusterless leaf color; attention should be paid to this.