The variety of ways to breed dracaena

In order to independently propagate dracaena, a number of rules should be observed that allow not only to obtain young specimens, but also to preserve the main plant without harming it. Propagation of the plant is possible both by cuttings and seeds. It is important to consider that the characteristics of its reproduction will depend on the plant variety.

General information

Dracaena is an unpretentious indoor plant, which stands out among others for its exotic appearance. In its structure, it most resembles a small palm tree with a strong trunk and a spectacular spreading crown. Oblong xiphoid leaves, depending on the variety, may have a different color. Usually it varies from saturated green to light green with white veins, but there may be grayish, reddish and bluish shades that give the plant a unique look. The most popular varieties of dracaena edged and fragrant, as well as dracaena Sander.

Photo gallery: unpretentious types of dracaena

Dracaena propagation

The most preferred seasons for the propagation of dracaena are summer and spring, the period from March to April is especially favorable, but it is possible to obtain cuttings suitable for planting even in winter. The main thing is to observe the temperature regime in the room where the dracaena is located, drafts and excessive humidity should also be avoided.

High growth of dracaena can become not only its advantage, but also a disadvantage. This applies to those plants that have grown for a long time and have not been pruned. Their trunks weaken over time, the likelihood of breaking the stem increases. In addition, excessively tall instances of dracaena do not look very attractive. Therefore, it is worth periodically rejuvenating them by pruning on cuttings.

At home, you can form beautiful plants that can become a great gift for family and friends.

Cuttings

Consider the most popular option of vegetative propagation - cuttings. For propagation, you can take the upper part of the stem with leaves (apical cuttings) or the stem without leaves (stem cuttings).

Apical cuttings

In this case, we are talking about cutting the top of the plant. To do this, use a sharp tool: secateurs or a knife, previously treated with alcohol. The height of the handle should be at least ten centimeters. In this case, the cut can be both smooth and oblique - this moment does not play a fundamental role.

It is important that the cut is smooth, the stem should not have burrs of the bark and should not be crushed at the time of cutting

Carry out this procedure carefully without damaging the stem and bark on it. The smoothness of the cut will determine how quickly the plant takes root.

In order to avoid decay of the stem, let it dry for one or two hours at a temperature of + 20-22 ° C, and to prevent decay of the whole plant, powder the cut of the process with powdered charcoal or pour molten paraffin.

Almost all varieties of dracaena at the stage of drying of the cuttings need to remove excess leaves on the part that will be immersed in the substrate. An exception is the bordered dracaena, whose stem is not covered with leaves.

After you can begin the rooting process. There are two methods of rooting apical cuttings:

• in water;
• in the substrate.

In the first case, warm water is required (optimum temperature + 20-25 ° C). It is necessary to change it as it becomes cloudy, that is, once or twice during the week. So that the water does not cloudy too quickly, a whole tablet of activated carbon is added to it, since it has a disinfecting property. The use of rooting preparations reduces the appearance of roots by 1-1.5 weeks. For this, Zircon is most often used (in the calculation of 2-3 drops per one glass of water).

Having chosen the method of rooting dracaena in the substrate, pay special attention to the choice of soil: give preference to sand, vermiculite or perlite. In addition, the use of hydrogel, as well as ready-made mixtures for cacti and palm trees, is common. To accelerate the process, you can use powdered-type rooting agents; potassium humate and heteroauxin can be attributed to them. They powder the bases of the cuttings moistened with water before placing them on the substrate. Liquid preparations in this case are also applicable. Epin, Zircon or Ecogel is used during rooting for watering the soil, being guided by the instructions attached to the substance. To avoid decay of plants, do not wet the substrate. In order to check the moisture level in it, just rub a small amount of soil in the palm of your hand: the substrate should crumble into lumps. A mini-greenhouse (made of plastic, polyethylene or glass) is created for cuttings, in conditions of which the temperature of the air and soil should reach + 20-22 ° C. During the day (3-5 times), the leaves should be sprayed with water at room temperature. In dracaena bordered apex leaves are often tied in a bundle, which helps prevent excessive evaporation of moisture. It is important to note that in order to avoid an excess of moisture in the greenhouse, it is worthwhile to carry out morning and evening airing for 15-20 minutes.

Video: apical cuttings of dracaena

Stem cuttings

This type of breeding can also give positive results. Typically, this method is used for plants that for any reason have lost their attractive appearance. For example, this procedure cannot be dispensed with if the top began to rot or dry. In this case, the stem is divided into cuttings 5-20 cm long and rooted in a light substrate. Depending on the location of the cuttings in it, the following methods are distinguished:

• horizontal;
• vertical.

On the left is a vertical way of root formation; on the right - germination of shoots with horizontal rooting

For horizontal rooting, sand, perlite or vermiculite is used as a substrate. In this case, the stalk in a lying position is slightly pressed into the substrate, the stalk does not sprinkle on top. The temperature of the air and soil should reach + 20-24 ° C. The presence of mini-greenhouses promotes rooting. It is important to note that a sign of a successful procedure for stem cuttings is not only the roots that appear in the plant, but also shoots that sprout from sleeping buds. The stalk itself is destroyed over time, since the substances from it are actively spent on the formation of roots and shoots. At a time when plant nutrition begins not from the cuttings, but from independently formed roots, shoots can be planted in separate pots.

It will also be useful material on how to properly transplant dracaena: //diz-cafe.com/rastenija/peresadka-dratsenyi-v-domashnih-usloviyah.html

The number of young plants will be equal to the number of shoots, since each of them can be planted separately

In vertical rooting, sand is used as a substrate, but earth can also be used. Particularly good is the combined version, when a plant is planted in the ground, sprinkled with sand on top, the layer of which will be 5 cm. Thus, the roots first appear in the sand layer and from it grow and grow in the ground. Thanks to this method, it is not necessary to transplant an established plant, since it is already in the soil. The optimum temperature remains at + 20-24 ° C, and the presence of a mini-greenhouse allows you to accelerate the process of emergence of roots. In this case, only the lower part of the shank is immersed in the substrate for three centimeters.

Under suitable conditions and good material taken for plant propagation, rooting takes 1-1.5 months, and shoots appear after 2 months

At lower air temperatures, the rooting process can be delayed for a longer time.

Seed propagation

At home, getting dracaena seeds is quite problematic. This is due to the fact that this plant blooms even in the most favorable conditions quite rarely. Many species bloom for the first time at the age of eight to eleven. Dracaena can bloom relatively quickly:

• fragrant;
• bent;
• Draco
• Godseff.

Panicles with small fragrant flowers may be white or yellowish

If you nevertheless fired up with this idea, you need to conduct artificial pollination of flowering specimens:

1. Use a brush with a soft pile, alternating through all the inflorescences;
2. Peel the resulting seeds from the pulp and immediately plant them in the ground.

After flowering and successful pollination, dracaena forms orange-red drupe fruits resembling cherries, which, after ripening, can be used for planting

Seeds purchased at the store are planted in March. For planting, you can use the finished soil or independently mix peat and sand in equal proportions. In order to accelerate the germination process, seeds can be germinated in advance:

1. Water is poured into a shallow saucer at room temperature (+ 20-22 ° C).
2. A water-absorbing material (a piece of cloth, gauze or cotton pads) is placed in a saucer with water, on which seeds are laid. To avoid the rapid evaporation of water, cover the container with glass or film on top.
3. Place the saucer in a sunny place (+ 20-22 ° C). Usually sprouts appear within two to three days.
4. To avoid drying out of seeds, add water as needed.

A large amount of water can be dangerous, so keep the fabric moist, but not completely immerse the seeds in water.

Seedling of germinated seeds occurs to a depth of one centimeter. Glasses for planting must be equipped with a drainage system. Containers with planted dracaena seeds are covered with polyethylene or glass, forming the effect of a mini-greenhouse.

Seed germination usually takes from one to five months. The soil should be kept moist at all times. The greenhouse is aired in the morning and evening for ten minutes. Emerging sprouts must be shaded, protecting them from direct sunlight.

Propagation by air layering

This method is good in that it allows you to root a new plant without cutting it from the main trunk immediately:

1. To do this, you need to determine how tall the young plant will be: such a distance is measured from the top.
2. The trunk is cleaned of leaves at the point received and a small incision is made to the middle of the trunk.
3. A small solid object made of wood or plastic is placed in it.
4. A transparent bag with peat is fixed under the cut site.
5. After that, the package is closed. It is important to note that the soil in it should not dry out.
6. Over time, the package and peat will be filled with roots, after which the resulting process can be completely separated from the mother and transplanted into a small pot.

1 - a notch of the trunk; 2 - packet fixation; 3 - fixing the package with peat; 4 - separation of the sprout with the emerged roots

Features of reproduction of different varieties

Depending on the type and variety of dracaena, they can differ not only in appearance, but also have their own characteristics in the process of reproduction. For instance:

• Dracaena Golden propagated by cuttings. In this case, the trunk without leaves should reach 20 cm. It is lowered into moist soil so that two or three buds remain on the surface. The temperature under the mini-greenhouse should reach + 28-30 ° C. In this form, the plant is maintained for 30 days;
• Reflex dracaena, also known as bent, tolerates cuttings well, but can also be propagated using seeds;
• Hooker dracaena at home almost does not bloom, so it is much easier to propagate the plant with apical cuttings or air layers, it is important to observe the temperature and humidity regime;
• fragrant dracaena is a very slowly growing shrub, which should be taken into account when pruning and propagating it;
• A feature of Derema dracaena is the simplicity of rooting in moist soil even without the use of special preparations;
• an interesting process is the propagation of Sander dracaena: interesting forms can be given to a plant, for example, twisting it;
  

  Giving the plant an extraordinary shape even for inexperienced gardeners
• Marginata dracaena, which is also bordered, can be of five varieties: the main green, bicolor, tricolor, purple and coloram. Each of them has its own color scheme. During propagation, the shoots of this plant can also be placed close to each other, twisted and twisted shapes. Best propagation occurs by cuttings with the use of a liquid preparation-rooting agent;
  

  Landing several trunks nearby allows you to achieve interesting results

• When propagating Godsef dracaena, it is important to place the cuttings under the film or glass. Air temperature must reach + 25 ° C;
• Dracaena Draco has a very wide trunk, which often has no branches, so to propagate this species so as not to harm the plant, it is better to seed;
• all methods are suitable for propagating compact dracaena. But it can be noted that when multiplying parts of a lignified trunk, the sections can be treated with paraffin, which will protect the trunk from drying out. In this form, dracaena is perfect for transportation over long distances and can lie for a long time in anticipation of landing.

It will also be useful material on how to combat diseases and pests of dracaena: //diz-cafe.com/rastenija/bolezni-i-vrediteli-draceny-kak-raspoznat-problemu-i-borotsya-s-nej.html

Possible problems during the propagation of dracaena and their solution

Reproduction of dracaena at home, as a rule, is a process that is not very difficult. And with a little effort, you can even get several young plants instead of one. Nevertheless, even experienced gardeners sometimes still have to face some difficulties:

• rotting of rooted cuttings in the substrate. This happens if the soil is too wet: it must be moist, but not moist. Perhaps the problem lies in the substrate itself: too heavy and dense, not suitable for dracaena;
• increased humidity and high temperature, necessary for rooting dracaena, can provoke rotting of the roots. To prevent this process, cover the soil with thick paper during spraying. Excess moisture after irrigation should also be removed;
• at the same time, excessive aridity of the soil and cool air can significantly slow down the development of roots and shoots. Therefore, compliance with the temperature and humidity regime plays an important role in the process of propagation of dracaena;
• do not sprout dracaena seeds. It should be patient: dracaena when grown from seeds does not differ in friendly shoots. Separate seeds can germinate up to six months, although more often this process takes 1-3 months. Soak seed germination will help soak with special drugs (Epin, Zircon or any other growth modulators);
• after trimming the apex of the remaining “hemp” of dracaena, lateral shoots are not formed. External factors are to blame.The presence of lateral shoots and their number even depends on the season (for example, if you cut the dracaena in winter, the lateral buds may not wake up at all, or only one will wake up; in summer, the number of awakened buds can vary from 2 to 5). This process also depends on humidity, therefore, a plastic bag is often put on the barrel to create an optimal air humidity regime.

Dracaena is unpretentious in care and suitable for interior decoration in homes and office buildings. Independently propagate this plant from cuttings, guided by the instructions, even a person who does not have experience in this field will be able to. Moreover, the whole procedure does not take much time and does not harm the main plant from which the shoots are taken.