Stem Rot in Dracaena

Overwatering

• Too much water that drains too slowly from around the dracaena's roots can drown the plant. When a plant drowns, the roots absorb more moisture than they can circulate up through the stem to the foliage. The roots soften and break down, as does the base of the dracaena's stem. A drowning plant may fall over when the stem becomes too soft to hold it upright. If the growing medium stays moist and squishy for several hours after watering the dracaena, the roots and stem may be drowning. Try repotting the plant into a sterilized container with fresh, sterile potting soil. Use potting soil with good drainage, and make sure the pot has drainage.

Fungal Infection

• Fusarium spp. are fungi that can infect any part of the dracaena. Most fusarium fungi cause leaf spots and wilt, but some types rot the plant's stems and can infect the canes of certain dracaena species. Fusarium moniliforme can infect both the foliage and the stems, as lesions on the leaves merge and spread to the stems. The fungus occurs most often while cuttings are rooting, since these must be kept moist. Fusarium stem rot symptoms are the same as for Erwinia, a bacterial pathogen. Have the infected material diagnosed at a lab, if the plant is worth saving, and use a fungicide drench on the potting soil to control the disease. Otherwise, discard the dracaena and replace it.

Bacterial Infection

• Erwinia chrysanthemi and Erwinia carotovora pv. carotovora bacterial infections cause the dracaena's stems to soften and rot. The infection is most often seen in rooted and unrooted cuttings. The stems become watery, slimy and often have a "rotten fish" odor. The foliage may turn yellow and fall off the stem. Discard infected cuttings or plants.

Pythium Root and Stem Rot

• Pythium can live in both garden soil and potting soil for several years before attacking the dracaena's root system. As the roots become more involved with the disease, pythium infection moves up into the crown (top) of the root system and then upward into the stem. Try removing the dracaena from the pot and washing the roots. Trim the roots of as much diseased material as possible, then dip the roots in fungicide formulated to treat pythium. Dispose of the potting soil, disinfect the pot and fill with fresh, sterile potting soil before repotting the dracaena. If the infection has spread too far up the stem, dispose of the plant and the potting soil and disinfect the container before planting a new dracaena.