Corn Plant
Dracaena fragrans
📖 About this plant
A classic architectural houseplant with thick, woody canes topped with rosettes of long, arching, glossy green leaves. The massangeana variety features a distinctive yellow stripe down the center of each leaf. Named for its fragrant clusters of small white flowers, though indoor specimens rarely bloom. One of the best plants for removing formaldehyde and other VOCs from indoor air. Slow-growing but extremely long-lived.
🧑🌾 Care requirements
Low to bright indirect
Every 2-3 weeks
Moderate (40-60%)
18-28°C
Well-draining potting mix with loam, peat, and perlite; slightly acidic pH preferred
Balanced liquid fertilizer (10-10-10) diluted to half strength every 4-6 weeks during growing season
📋 Plant facts
- 🌍 Origin
- Tropical Africa (Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, Cameroon)
- 📏 Max height
- 150-300 cm indoors (can reach 6 m or more in natural habitat)
- 📐 Spread
- 60-120 cm
- 🕰️ Bloom time
- Rarely indoors
- 🎨 Bloom color
- White, Pink
- 🍃 Foliage color
- Green, Yellow Striped
- ⏳ Lifespan
- Perennial
- 📈 Growth rate
- Slow
- ☠️ Toxicity
- Mildly toxic to cats and dogs — contains saponins that cause vomiting, excessive drooling, and loss of appetite if ingested
- 🌱 Propagation
- Stem tip cuttings or cane cuttings (segmented stems) placed in water or moist soil; air layering also works
🛡️ Health & Safety
Mildly toxic to cats and dogs — contains saponins that cause vomiting, excessive drooling, and loss of appetite if ingested
Common issues
- Yellow leaves from overwatering, Brown leaf tips from fluoride sensitivity, Mealybugs and scale
💡 Care tips
- Yellow leaves at bottom are natural as plant ages,Can tolerate low light but grows slower,Use filtered water to prevent brown leaf tips,Slow grower that can live for many years
