Dracaena deremensis

Janet Craig Dracaena - Dracaena Palm

Dracaena deremensis encompasses several attractive plants. The most well known of the group is the cultivar 'Janet Craig'. Its 4 inch wide, dark green leaves can reach a length of 18 inches. This gives mature plants a palm-like appearance.

Young plants will retain all their foliage for many years.

Only with age will the lower leaves drop to expose the canes.

It is this form that some people call the Dracaena palm.
A similar plant is Dracaena fragrans, the indoor corn plant.

You can tell the two apart because the indoor corn plant will develop a yellow stripe down the center of its leaves when grown in high light. Also its canes are as thick as your wrist. The canes of the Janet Craig Dracaena are much thinner.

Over several years D. deremensis 'Janet Craig' will reach a height of 5-7 feet. When it is mature it may bloom if it gets enough light to do so. After it flowers it will branch at the tip. This may or may not be attractive.

When the one on my porch did this, I cut one of the new shoots off and stuck it into the soil in the pot to make another cane with foliage all the way to the bottom.

I thought it looked strange at the top of the plant.

Other D. deremensis cultivars include the gray-green leaved 'Warneckii'. Each sword-shaped leaf has a white stripe down both sides. The leaves of the cultivar 'Bausei' have a wide white band in the center and are green on each side.

The older leaves of 'Rhoers Gold' are nearly identical to those of 'Warneckii'. This cultivar's pale yellow new growth is what distinguishes it.

All Dracaena deremensis plants originate in tropical Africa. None will withstand frost. Unless you live in the tropics, it is best grown as a house plant.





Go back to Dracaena Plant
The long, broad tropical leaves of the Dracaena plant fall from the lower stems of the plant as it ages giving the plant a palm-like appearance. This is why many people will refer to a mature Dracaena as a Dracaena palm.

Dracaena Marginata
Dracaena marginata or Madagascar dragon tree grows into an impressively large house plant in a short time. It looks good in both formal and informal settings. As an added bonus, it is easy to grow.

Ti Plant
The Hawaiian good luck ti plant is native to tropical Asia and Polynesia where its lustrous, strap-like leaves are used to make cloth.

Go from Dracaena Janet Craig back to Indoor Palm Trees
Indoor palm trees types. Types of palm trees that perform best as exotic house plants. Also, palm-like indoor trees you can raise as unusual, easy house plants.

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