Dracena Draco

[DoomsDave]

Saw this Drac-drac, and well, swooned in the front seat of the No-Va . . .

[Kris]

Dear Dave  

thanks for the still of dragon blood tree ! it is one of the most

liked plant other than palms.i have tried to germinate this

plant,but dies due to damp-off.and even joshuea tree is

also my favoutiate.

thanks for posting those still,wish to see more of this beauty

do memebers grow this palnt in their gardens or nurseries.

if so some stills for guys like me to feast on !

love,

Kris  

[Kris]

Germinated Dragon blood tree_

[Kris]

one more_

iam shure even these guys will not make it to next

month !

[palmmermaid]

Steve,

Great picture.  I love these trees.  I think it is too humid (or at least it is supposed to be humid) in south Florida to grow these.

[palmmermaid]

(palmmermaid @ May 20 2007,18:10)

QUOTE

Steve,

Great picture.  I love these trees.  I think it is too humid (or at least it is supposed to be humid) in south Florida to grow these.

Dave,

Sorry, I called you Steve.

[FRITO]

cool tree. never seen one in person before.

Kris, goodluck with your seedling. isnt there a fungicide spray to help prevent damping off?

[STEVE IN SO CAL]

That's a nicern...

[Kris]

(FRITO @ May 20 2007,19:07)

QUOTE

Kris,

goodluck with your seedling. isnt there a fungicide spray to help prevent damping off?

Dear Luke  

we here have the best & finest fungicides.but since iam a

novice i do not know when to use this or how much water.

that's the only problem for me.and this time no fungicides

but iam monitering watering carefully.one of those are in my

A/c Bed room and the other in my first floor hall.i think you

have seen my thread on my first floor is full !

thanks for wishing me good luck.since if i have a tree like the one in daves still.i will not hesistate in giving cuttings for locals who love and adore exocitic plants ! since all that matters to me is propogation...of those

plants in india.

Love,

Kris  

[bahia]

Kris,

i don't think you will ever have much luck with Dracena draco in your climate, they just don't do well with tropical heat and humidity.  They love coastal southern California conditions as they are so similar to their native Canary Island habitat climate.  If you do get them to suvive the seedling stage, they should be kept as dry and well drained as possible, especially at the hottest times of the year.  Same thing with Joshua trees, this is just not a tropical climate suited species.  It would seem that you have a thing for mediterranean climate plants, (especially Phoenix canariensis), the same way we in California have a fascination for coconut palms and other hard to grow ultratropicals.

[DoomsDave]

(palmmermaid @ May 20 2007,18:11)

QUOTE

(palmmermaid @ May 20 2007,18:10)

QUOTE

Steve,

Great picture.  I love these trees.  I think it is too humid (or at least it is supposed to be humid) in south Florida to grow these.

Dave,

Sorry, I called you Steve.

It's okay!

My dad always did that when my brother Steve and I were growing up.  

"Steve, er-Dave!"

"Dave, uh-Steve . . . . "

[paulgila]

i should try the "staying in the car" photography method

that you have pioneered,dave. i've been doing it the "hard way" all these years!

[Jerry@TreeZoo]

Kitty,

D.D. grows fine here if you grow it in sand.  We have an 8 footer in the Arboretum that we bought at Jeff Searle's several years ago.  There is one even bigger than Dave's pic in downtown Ft Lauderdale.

Jerry

[Cycadcenter]

Kris,

When I was over at our farm in Queensland in December I threw a hand full of Dracena draco seeds in a container and just left it under the sprinkler in the shade house.

I thought is was about time to palnt them up last week and got 130 seedlings out of the pot

Bruce

[LJG]

Steve, er-Dave. In looking out your side view mirror, I think someone is following you.  

???

[paulgila]

yeah,its dave,er,steve!

[Kris]

Dear Bahia  

thanks for the information about the dragon blood trees

climatic requirements.but i must say i will try try again to

report to this forum where and what iam doing wrong in

my methods...

Dear Bruce  

that's one hell a lot of sprouts you got there,mine do not last even to see their leaves going green !anywhy great job..

and i really envy you !  

Thanks for the infomation & that beautiful sprouts still.

Love,

Kris  

[RRONNIE]

See what was just posted on: http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/725677/

Ronnie

[palmmermaid]

(Dave from So-Cal @ May 21 2007,14:27)

QUOTE

(palmmermaid @ May 20 2007,18:11)

QUOTE

(palmmermaid @ May 20 2007,18:10)

QUOTE

Steve,

Great picture.  I love these trees.  I think it is too humid (or at least it is supposed to be humid) in south Florida to grow these.

Dave,

Sorry, I called you Steve.

It's okay!

My dad always did that when my brother Steve and I were growing up.  

"Steve, er-Dave!"

"Dave, uh-Steve . . . . "

Dave,

I understand!  I am the oldest of 6 children and sometimes my parents would go through all names or just say, "Get over here, whoever you are!".

[palmmermaid]

(Jerry@TreeZoo @ May 21 2007,18:16)

QUOTE

Kitty,

D.D. grows fine here if you grow it in sand.  We have an 8 footer in the Arboretum that we bought at Jeff Searle's several years ago.  There is one even bigger than Dave's pic in downtown Ft Lauderdale.

Jerry

Jerry,

Thanks for the info.  If I can find one I may try it in one of my dry areas.  My yard has lots of dry and wet areas.  I have a succulent garden that is doing well.

[Jerry@TreeZoo]

The previous owner of my property brought in a lot of various fill.  Some is mucky and some sandy.  It will take me a while to get it all sorted out as the few new things I have planted have quite different drainage rates.  One tree is watered and the water puddles on top of the soil, ten feet away I have to hold a hose for 5 minutes before a puddle forms.

Jerry

[Kris]

Dear Ronnie  

thanks for that still and there i did see lots of loved ones_

the dragon blood was mouthwatering and also some very weak looking CIDP's they were eye watering !  

And thanks for the link,

Love,

Kris  

[ibreakforpalms]

Hey Ronnie,

I have a picture of that same tree from the same angle.  Below is a 4"x6" photo I scanned into my computer.  Notice the Bouganvillia on the white wall, in your picture it's smaller!

[Jerry@TreeZoo]

Holy Cow!  That is a big DD!

Jerry

[Kris]

Dear Jason  

all i could do seeing was to keep my both hands on my head in

awe ! and i think i must book a ticket in the flight that's leaving for that location...arming myself with some cutting tools.  

I have lost patience growing these bueties from seeds ! _ I can't Wait any longer.Hey ronnie are you too comming with me!  ???

Thanks for those lovely still.

Love,

Kris  :cool:

[DoomsDave]

(LJG @ May 22 2007,00:43)

QUOTE

Steve, er-Dave. In looking out your side view mirror, I think someone is following you.  

???

Someone is ALWAYS following me!

What?  

Get back . . .

dave

[Paul S]

I have the same picture, too, after visiting the tree in spring.  It resides in a town called Icod de los Vinos in northern Tenerife and is said to be the oldest Dragon Tree in the world.  Accounts vary as to it's age - anything up to 2,000 yrs.  That would make it as old as the human habitation of the islands.  But even more conservative estimates of half that age would make it an old old tree when the Spanish arrived.

They really are spectacular plants - I didn't fully appreciate thier beauty when seen as single specimens here and then in the mediterranean areas of Europe.  It was only when travelling through and around Tenerife, where they are such a conspicuous part of the landscape, that they captivated me.

Here is a group of them in a visitor attraction called Loro Parque, an rea they call 'Dragon Hill'

To me they have a strange, almost prehistioric kind of feel to them.  The shame of it is that they are so frost tender so, unless I move somewhere a good deal warmer (that vacant lot next to you, Carlo?   ) I can only keep a small potted one for a while.  Still, kmakes them all the more special when I go back, I guess.

[Kris]

Dear Paul S  

thanks a lot for that fentastic still of my loved one !

i suppose even if i visited that place in person i doubt would i

have covered that still so nice ?

Love,

Kris  

[Carlo Morici]

I live surrounded by dragon trees. It is a popular ornamental on all the Canary Islands. here is my night picture of the "drago millenario" in Icod de Los Vinos, which is the largest specimen on earth. A much larger one lived in La Orotava and died broken by a windstorm storm in the mid 1800's.

I must contribute, sorry:

Carlo, Tenerife

[Kris]

Dear Carlos  

i can see that you have kept the best for the last !  

Jesus_with those lighting all i can tell is that i must try to

germinate this one any many times possible.since they die

due to damp-off ! i feel when a cidp can survive in india then

why not try this one too !  

And the cidp's red fruticas in those lightings are simply fentastic.and thanks a lot for this big bang...best of all the current stills of the dragon blood tree !

Love,

Kris  

[Kris]

Dear Friends  

look this wonder of this dragon blood tree sapling...

i thought it rotted so stopped watering but was still

living inside my A/C bed room.and now for the past 1

month its raining intermitedely...

yesterday i thought to rearrange few pots and remove those that have left me..at that moment i noticed a thin sprout from the Db plant.and here is a still and i have not watered it for the past one month thinking its dead !

and i noticed that these guys like very litle water and less heat and A/C kind of controlled air ?

here is the still of the recovering baby !

[palmen]

My dragons

Edited May 17, 2008 by palmen

[Cycadcenter]

I saw this in the Sydney Morning Herald last week, anyone who has visited the garden knows this tree:

Richard Macey

May 7, 2008

IF A tree topples in Sydney's Royal Botanic Gardens will anyone hear it fall?

They did when a dragon blood tree, planted more than 100 years ago, suddenly toppled.

Just seconds after a passing French exchange student snapped a picture of the eight-metre tall tree, it suddenly rolled over, coming to rest on its 10-metre canopy, sparking a serious botanical rescue mission.

"Experts believe the tree has a 60-40 chance of being saved," a concerned gardens acting director, Bernard Carlon, said.

However, cautious officials, not yet sure if propping the tree upright will require a crane, say it may be several days before the salvage operation can occur.

It is believed the tree probably fell because after years of drought the recent rain triggered a dramatic growth spurt in which the roots could not keep pace with the branches.

A native of the Canary Islands, it was planted during the directorship of Joseph Maiden.

"Maiden was an enthusiast of Canary Islands flora and he made efforts to give the gardens a tropical touch," said Mr Carlon. "In the wild, the dragon blood tree can live up to 650 years and reaches heights of around 10 to 12 metres. The tree grows slowly, about one metre every 10 years."

Despite its age, the tree, which stood a short distance from the Opera House, is considered a youngster.

The exchange student, Marie Poinsignon, who is studying a business course at the University of Technology, Sydney, said she had gone to the gardens on Friday to study when she saw the tree fall.

"I took a picture of one of my friends; the tree was just behind her," said Ms Poinsignon. "Suddenly I head a noise like a crash. It fell quite quickly."

A man sitting on a nearby bench escaped unharmed.

[LJG]

That is interesting and anyone who has these plants would find fault with a few things:

1) "recent rain triggered a dramatic growth spurt in which the roots could not keep pace with the branches."

- Sorry but these things are slow! There is no such thing as a "dramatic growth spurt".

- The roots actually grow quit fast. I can attest to this from experience.

2) "Experts believe the tree has a 60-40 chance of being saved"

- Experts? These things are EASY to move and transplant. It simply fell over. Like many I have seen do. Even the old ones at Quail BGs fall over and you can see some are even propped up now.

3) "not yet sure if propping the tree upright will require a crane"

- This was funny. The final result will be a crane at minimum. These things weigh a ton. They are also delicate at the branching points and will "pop" right off from stress. So they will need to manage it from the older parts if they want to retain the limbs.

These are truly unbelievable trees and one of my all-time favorites. Hence why I have three in my yard, including a 15 foot 40 some year old tree I bought out of a foreclosures yard. (it was either going to me or to some profiteers stockpile).

[Kris]

Here is our Dragon Blood Tree,and it came to me from M@x,as young sapling and once it has stablised the transport shock,its now in full sunlight & rainfall...and its defying all theories that i cannot grow a draconea in our tropical climate..?

And here are the visuals for you...!

Love,

Kris

[simona]

Great job, Kris! Hope it will grow as big as those great pics shone by now!

I've got some seeds from the Canary island and two of them germinated.

[LJG]

Kris, while not the humidity you have, I still have my three planted in a tropic garden setting. Meaning they get the same water my other plants get - including my palms. As long as the soil drains, I have had no issue with them taking lots of water in the ground.

Be carefull potting up. They do not like to be shocked. While they recover fine, it forces them into an early flower. Once that happens it branches early and you do not devlop a tall trunk first. I had a few small ones in the groundmaybe twice the size of yours. I gave them to friends and neighbors. ALL 3 flowered the next year. You can keep rubbing off the additional buds and choose one to try to tain back to single, but it is never the same and the weakest point of the tree is where it branched.

[Kris]

Dear Simona

hey you have a green thumb,since many grew for me from seeds but suddenly damped-off ! your baby looks fine...thanks for the still !

And Dear Len

thanks a lot,for giving me all the prictionary meassures,since at this point i do not want to loss it at all cost !_Thanks very much for your time.i will take note of it.

thanks & lots of love,

Kris

[Kris]

Here's an update as of Nov'08.this dragon blood tree is with me for the past one year or so..last year it has passed the rainy season with flying colours.and now we are in our wet winters..hope this baby will make it through !

And the soil inside that pot is full of blue metal chips !

And by the way it has not grown much in terms of height but its trunking...what fertz does it like most ? N-P-K what ratio...

thanks & love,

Kris

[Kris]

An update of our Dragon Blood tree...growing in hot wet coastal zone with high humidity year around !

Love,

Kris