When Does Dracaena Bloom and Fruit? Detailed Guide to Propagation Methods and Cutting Time
Dracaena, also known as the bleeding tree, the holy herb for invigorating blood, and the plant of longevity. It is the precious Yunnan red medicine —— dragon's blood, also known as qilinjie, and is as famous as Yunnan Baiyao. So when does Dracaena bloom and fruit? What are its propagation methods? When is the best time to take cuttings?
Dracaena generally blooms and fruits in February.
Dracaena Propagation Methods
Air Layering Propagation
Conditions for Air Layering Propagation
The stems of Dracaena mostly grow upright and branch little. After the plant has grown for several years, the basal leaves fall off, and it naturally loses its ornamental value.
In view of this, growers can carry out air layering propagation in the hot and humid season from May to July.
Air Layering Method
At a suitable part of the plant's stem, make a ring cut with a ring width of 1.8-2.2 cm, deep to the xylem, and use a small knife to peel off the bark at the ring; wipe away the overflowing liquid from the cut with a clean wet cloth; apply 5000-1000 ppm naphthaleneacetic acid aqueous solution to the bark at the upper end of the cut; then tie white plastic film to the lower end of the cut, straighten it into a funnel shape, fill it with a rooting medium made by mixing moss and mountain soil, wrap it around the cut, pour one thorough watering, tie the upper end of the plastic film tightly, then place the plant outdoors for cultivation and strengthen fertilizer and water management.
After air layering Dracaena, check at any time whether the medium is dry and replenish water as needed. Generally, after 30 to 40 days of cultivation, new roots appear at the ring-cut site, and by September to October it can be cut away from the mother plant and cultivated separately to become an independently growing plant.
Dracaena Propagation Methods
Dracaena Propagation Methods: Cutting Propagation
Choosing the Cutting Time
Dracaena can also be propagated asexually by cuttings, from May to June. This is precisely the vigorous growth period of Dracaena, when the plant is rich in nutrients, and cuttings root extremely easily after planting.
Choosing Cutting Branches
Before taking cuttings, select a mother plant with high ornamental value, take healthy branches that have grown for more than two years, each segment about 10-20 cm long, with or without leaves.
Specific Cutting Techniques
Cut the base of the cutting into a flat end, cut the upper part crosswise and keep the leaves, soak both the upper and lower cuts in clean water to wash away the overflowing sap, place in a cool and ventilated place to air-dry for a while, then soak the base of the cutting 2-3 cm deep in 5000-1000 ppm naphthaleneacetic acid, generally for 5 seconds, and insert immediately after soaking.
For Dracaena cuttings, the seedbed can use a small earthenware flower pot, and the medium can be vermiculite, perlite, or high-temperature sterilized plain sandy soil; after potting, insert the cuttings. One plant per pot; after inserting, pour one thorough watering, place the seedbed in a spot with dappled light, and tend carefully.
Cutting Care
The subsequent management work is mainly to keep the medium moist. Dracaena heals wounds quickly, roots early, and sprouts rapidly. Generally, in 15 to 20 days, under the action of wound hormones, the cut produces callus tissue; in 25 to 35 days, under the action of endogenous hormones, the cutting quickly forms root primordia; in 35 to 40 days, new roots can sprout; and after two months, it can be repotted and transplanted with culture soil.