SHRUBS > CORDYLINE
IN THIS GUIDE
CORDYLINE GUIDES
Container GrowingLeaves Changing ColourOverwinteringPropagationPruningRevivalVarieties
Although Cordyline is a genus comprise 23 species of woody plants , where gardeners are concerned the name connotes a handful of ornamental species.1Cordyline Comm . ex R.Br.(n.d . ) . Kew Botanic Gardens . Retrieved May 22 , 2023 , fromhttps://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:24159-1#children
They are of widely variegate size , most with lanceolate leaves fanning outward radially and bearing clusters of midget flowers .
The ‘ Cabbage Tree ’ and its variants are perhaps the most well - known and also the most popular species .
Cordyline species are fair diverse in both size and appearance .
Many Cordyline are a good option for borders and for accents , they are used to determine off brightly - coloured flowers , andthey make artistic element in a rock garden .
Overview
PreferredFull Sun / Partial Shade
ExposureSheltered
Height4 – 8 grand
Spread2.5 – 4 M
Bloom TimeJuly – August
PreferredMost Soil Types
MoistureMoist but well drained
pHAny
They can be placed in the corners of your terrace , and they can just as well be aim in the corners of your drawing room .
“ How well-chosen they are outside , and for how long , will look on their hardiness , ” apportion Master Horticulturist Peter Lickorish .
“ Those with a hardiness of H1 are predominantly houseplants . ”
Cordyline are evergreen perennials and many of them resemble miniature thenar trees .
The leaves tend to be lance - shaped and point , radiating outward , and growing in tier on the central stem .
They are among the most distinctive and prominent of all leave .
While many are some shade of deep greenish , other metal money ’ and cultivars ’ foliage have heart - get hues .
unseasoned leaves of some species are hot pink , others are bordered and divest with yellow and rise , still others are a chocolatey maroon .
But Cordyline is not only about its attractive foliation : in summertime , most specie bear panicle or other atomiser of small-scale bloodless or light - coloured flowers .
These are adored by bees .
make out autumn , the panicles and sprays transform into tassels of small berries , normally red and sometimes purple .
Because Cordylines are perennials and , once imbed in condition to their liking , require very little care , they are an excellent choice for the casual gardener who desire to plant once , especially outdoors , and then leave the slight beauties to their own devices .
Cordyline Plant Care
In the independent Cordyline cultivar prefer moist but well - drained grunge and a humid atmosphere .
While you certainly should not overwater , do not leave the land to dry out out especially during summer , dry weather , or the grow time of year .
These industrial plant ’ taste for Dominicus or tad varies quite wide between even related species .
C. australisdoes dear in full Sunday to very light-colored shade butC. fruticosaprefers part shade , with collateral sun being well .
As a general rule , coinage and cultivars with green foliage have a greater taste for sunlight ; in contrast , the more multi - coloured the foliage , the keen the preference for shadowiness and indirect sunlight .
Most Cordyline plants do best in ample soil .
genus Cordyline have a distinct preference for moist ground and do not do well in dry soil .
Some Cordyline do well even in plastered grunge but it should not be waterlogged , especially in wintertime , when their tolerance for dampness is at its humbled .
The soil ’s pH should be between slightly acid to achromatic ; a adept range is 6.0 - 7.0 .
“ If potting your plant , apply commercial-grade constitutive soil or a mix comprising tight to 50 % loam and the rest peat - costless compost , with some add moxie , ” total Peter .
take a fertiliser with a balanced N - atomic number 15 - K proportion with which to fertilise potted Cordyline at monthly intervals during the growing season .
“ Those grown in the ground seldom need feeding , though mulching before wintertime can be beneficial , ” Peter says .
Do not fertilize at all during winter .
Habitat & Growing Conditions
Cordyline metal money , as miscellaneous as they are , thrive in divers conditions .
Take the Cabbage Tree itself – they can grow in soil conditions ranging from low - lying swamps to rocky hillside in New Zealand where they once underwrite vast nerve tract of earth including riverine arena .
In demarcation , C. congestaor the Narrow - Leaved Palm Lily sprout next to rainforests and within eucalyptus forests .
Other genus Cordyline thrive in river valley . However , what is non - conveyable for seedlings and young plants is ample sunlight and abundant pee .
Cordyline species , as tropical and sub - tropic plants , prefer warm climate .
Even so , most Cordylines are correct at home in remote lands like England and Japan where they are sought - after architectural plant .
These evergreens are surprisingly hardy ; indeed , some species and cultivar stomach even sub - freezing temperatures .
Consider : though the preferred temperature range for bothC. australisandC. australis ‘ Atropurpureum’is 18 - 22 ° C , the former can stand temperatures all the way down to -7 ° snow and the latter to -5 ° C provide the plants are mature .
How To Shorten A Cordyline
Where Cordyline are concerned , your war cry is , “ be merciless ! ” – and that ’s because Cordylines can get out of bridge player and grow tall , gangly and straggly , but they are very exonerative of the tongue .
Simply – and pitilessly – cut back the entire plant to reduce and hold its size during the maturate time of year .
Use a brace of secateurs or loppers ( after scavenge the blades with dilute rubbing alcohol ) to ignore off one or more headway and go out about 40 cm of the chief stem(s ) .
unused growth will presently be visible , but you’re able to help this along by put on some blood fertiliser or bone plant food .
Repeat the process as and when necessary and you will end up with a Cordyline whose size and pattern is to your liking .
However , if , after being thin out back , the plant has not grown improbable but has spread too far laterally or look unkempt , prune it .
Do not trim off the entire head during the showery season or in cold weather condition – during full stop of rain or cold , the plant demand its leafage to exist .
“ Cordyline trunks are among the most classifiable feature of this industrial plant once mature , ” shares Peter .
“ you may either cut old , dying leaves back to entrust poor stubs a couple of centimetre long , which make a geometric formula cloaking the luggage compartment , or peel the leaves off to expose the trunk underneath .
“ I ca n’t adjudicate which I opt with mine so have done both , but either way , it ’s a vigorous plant .
“ Scarcely a decennary old , mine is several beat high and puts on extensive re - growth each year .
“ produce bolt upright , it makes a good focal point with a slender canopy , ideal for underplanting . ”
Common Problems
Aphids , mealybugs , scale , thrips , and wanderer pinch are the primary pests and problems that Cordyline owners may need to tackle .
Be wakeful , especially on indoor Cordyline , as spider mite can cause unsightly brown spotting on the leaf .
This is a resultant role of the mites sucking sap .
If you catch a spider touch infestation early , it may have affected only a small part of your flora .
If so , trim back off that part , but if the entire plant is bear on , it will be hard to reject the mites and the wisest class may be to give up that plant .
Otherwise expend Tanacetum coccineum to control population which have start to produce silk webbing .
If your mealy bug - infested Cordyline is outdoors , release beneficial insects like lacewings and Mealybug Destroyers on the works .
They feed upon mealy bug .
“ Inside , some levels of damage can be tolerated , but pyrethrum is a successful treatment .
Aphids are a serious menace because they breed so rapidly and in such numeral that they can outrun your efforts to extirpate them .
Wipe or spray any major aphid infestations off with water system , to prevent secondary problem with pitchy mould . They are more likely to be found indoors .
To hold a localised infestation of thrip , which can badly weaken plant by their sap - sucking , hang suited viscid maw to minimize damage .
For big or unregenerate infestation , spray Spinosad once only and not on a recurring docket .
Also deploy minute plagiarist bugs and lacewing fly , the natural predatory animal of thrips .
You involve to be sure that your Cordyline is idle because sometimes they play phalanger !
If your Cordyline has lost all its leaves , continue like for it and be patient .
If new shoots sprout from the proboscis itself , the plant is not dead .
But if no germinate sprout from the trunk or from the grunge level , the works is probably bushed , especially if the trunk or essence of the plant feels hokey .
If the main stem or tree trunk feels soft but firm lower down , skip it back to the point where it is difficult and firm – do so only in the summer .
Then keep a scout on the plant to see whether or not new shoots sprout from the residual of the trunk .
