Dracaena's leaves are getting dry! Please HELP! URGENT!

[greta]

I've had a dracaena for two years. Some of the leaves were getting yellow and the soil didn't drain well, so I thought, that it would help if I take her (the dracaena)out of the pot and change some of the soil. As I'm not very experienced, I'm afraid I accidentally damaged some of the secondary roots. I thought that the plant would feel better if I put some of the previous soil back in the pot, so I added just a little new. The previous soil was quite wet and I didn't water the plant after that - I put only 50 mg water. In the evening I noticed, that some of the leaves were dry (not yellow, just thin and dry). I decided to wait and see, how she is in the morning. A few other leaves were dry. My neighbor said, that I should have watered her after the change of soil and so I put I lot of water. On the other morning I noticed, that more leaves were dry. What can I do? A few leaves are getting dry every few hours. Now only the few new leaves are not dry yet. What is going on? Can I save her? Please, help me, if you can! Help me as soon as possible, because the process is very fast! PLEASE!

[greta]

It's about the same dracaena. I was advised to keep her warm, so she would have new roots. And I kept her warm for a week. But yesterday the older leaves suddenly became chlorotic. They lost their color – they became white yesterday and today they became yellowish. Please, if anyone knows what is the reason and what I could do about it, please, tell me!

[Newt]

Hi Greta,
Sounds like you plant is under severe stress. If some of the roots are damaged then some of the leaves will not recover. Once a leaf turns yellow, it will not turn green so you can remove the yellow ones. Dracaenas like temperatures of 60* to 85*F, but I would recommend it on the cool side since it has been water stressed. Take a look here for general plant care and how to transplant.

http://www.ourgardengang.com/houseplants.htm

Good luck,
Newt

[greta]

Thank you very much, Newt! I really appreciate your advice! Unfortunately in the last few days more leaves got dry. Now only those on the top are still fine. I think the roots rot. What can I do? The soil is still very wet, although I haven’t watered it for ten days. I was told to spray the leaves with warm water. Do you think it will help? I try to keep high humidity (70 – 85 %) and the temperature is about 70 – 75 F. Is it too hot? I’m desperate! I’m afraid I do everything the wrong way! :cry:

[Newt]

Hi Greta,
Don't fret. It sounds like you are doing everything you can do now. Keep in mind that roots that are damaged may not show in leaf damage for 2 to 4 weeks. This process could continue for several weeks. It takes time for the leaves to die off. The best thing I can recommend is to remove any yellowing leaves so the plant isn't stressed trying to support leaves that will eventually die and try to dry out the soil. Don't water again until at least the top 2" of soil is dry. Just stick your finger in the soil up to your second joint. If it's dry to that point, you can water again.

Misting the leaves is not a bad thing, but don't overdo it. The plant will absorb some moisture through the leaves. The temperature sounds ok, but try and keep it more towards 70*. The warmer temps will dry the leaves more.

Keep up the good work!
Newt

[greta]

Hello, Newt!

I would like to thank you once again! You are the only person who would help me! Do you have any idea how I could make the soil dry out faster? I don’t want any other leaves to get dry, so I keep the humidity high, but it doesn’t allow the soil to dry out. It has been two weeks since I watered it for the last time, but when I touch the soil, it feels as though I watered it four days ago.

What could I do if I notice that the last leaves are getting dry? Should I try to repot it?
Thank you in advance!

[Newt]

Hi Greta,
Repotting it may be a good idea at this point. Here's what I would suggest: Use a good potting soil, not a cheap one. Take the plant out of the pot and GENTLY remove as much of the soil as you can without damaging the roots. Use the new potting soil and plant in the same pot at the same depth it was before. Water until the water runs out of the bottom of the pot and then empty the water from the saucer so the plant doesn't stand in any water. Use that site I gave you earlier for more information, it should be really helpful.

Draceanas don't like to be in wet soil for long periods of time. If you notice that the leaves start to turn brown, your plant probably has root rot. I hope this doesn't happen, but I do think you should be prepared.

Hope it goes well,
Newt

Greta,

I suspect that the roots of your marginata have already rotted beyond recovery. Sorry. If you unpot your plant, I am quite sure you will find only dark, soft, mushy roots.

Newt is right about marginatas not tolerating constantly moist soil. Once root rot sets in with marginatas, it is almost impossible to reverse.

You might be able to air layer the upper portion, but if there are few leaves left, then it is probably not worth it.

If you want to e-mail a photo to me, I may have some additional advice.

[Richie M]

Hi, i've just found this after doing a Google to see whats up with my Dragon tree. I appear to very similar symptoms to what you guys have described but seem to of gone one step further! The main plant in my pot (which contains 2 other dragon trees) lost all of its leaves apart from the very top few (plant is about 4 foot high) then the trunk seemed to of shrunk inside itself :-S (i know that sounds a bit strange but basically i can squeeze the trunk, the outer "bark" feels like a thick paper tube with a solid center) Yesterday the top segment with growth actually fell off the tree, which i have now planted in the pot in the hope that it will root itself.
I am quite upset about this as the plant was growing nicely :-(

[Newt]

Hi Richie,
Sounds like root rot. You have already lost the main part of the plant if you have the mushy thing going on. You will need to unpot and try and save the healthy shoots. You should find this site helpful. Be sure and look on the left and you can also click at the bottom of the page for more info on potting and repotting.

http://www.ourgardengang.com/houseplants.htm

Good luck,
Newt