Image – Wikimedia/David J. Stang
Dracaena marginata is a plant that in Spain, as well as in many other places with temperate climates, is widely grown indoors, since in nurseries it has always been sold as a plant to keep at home. And this is so for a very simple reason: it does not support frost.
But, Can you have a dracaena marginata outdoors? From my experience, I can tell you yes, but depending on the regions of the world, you will have to protect it when the cold arrives. Below I will explain in detail how I take care of mine in the south of the island of Mallorca.
Where does the dracaena marginata come from and what climate does it support?
Image – Wikimedia/Mokkie
As always when doing this type of article, I will first explain to you what are the characteristics of the place where it lives naturally. And to answer this question, tell you that the dracaena marginata It is an evergreen shrub that grows in Madagascar, in regions where the climate is tropical or subtropical.. For this reason, we must never expose it to strong frost, since it already suffers damage if it drops below -1ºC.
Air humidity is always high. This allows the leaves to stay healthy on a day-to-day basis. But it must be said that if it were kept in a dry or even very dry environment, it would become very vulnerable to attacks by spider mites, which is why it must be watered every day with rainwater. or drinkable. .
Can it be outdoors all year round?
Dracaena marginata is, as I said just above, a plant of tropical origin. He doesn’t like the cold at all, and in fact he goes very badly when the mercury in the thermometer drops too low. For that, If you wonder if it can be outside, you should know that if you live in an area where there are frosts, the answer will be no.and also a resounding “no” as we would lose it before the first winter snowfall.
And it is that, really, the temperature does not have to be below 0 degrees for the leaves to die: if they remain low, between 15 and 5ºC for a few days in a row -like during a cold snap, for example-, he will also have a bad time. It happens to a few plants I have in my garden, like the Enset ventricosum and the Euphorbia grantii. The stems remain intact, but the leaves are quite bad, dead.
Although it can freeze -with temperatures as low as -1.5ºC-, if it does occur it will only be a one-off and very short frost, so that the plants can resume their growth without problems. in spring.
With these conditions, I was encouraged to leave the dracaena marginata outside. All year. Let’s see what happens. The first experiment was with a specimen in a pot, which I put under a tree of Melia Azedarach. There were no more leaves, but it germinated in the spring.
And the last experiment was with a specimen planted in the garden. This one is much more protected, because in front of it there are several bushes that measure more than half a meter in height (the dracaena does not exceed 40cm), and behind it has a wall. However, what I see that hurts him the most is the wind that blows in winter, especially when it comes from the north, because it is much colder; but still and all, he gets ahead.
So in my experience, yes it can be outside, but as long as the temperatures in winter are not very low, and kept in a protected area. I only recommend having it without any type of protection if the climate is tropical or subtropical, as is the case, for example, in parts of the Canary Islands or in the extreme south of Andalusia.
How to maintain the dracaena marginata outdoors?
Image – Flickr/Forest & Kim Starr
If you dare to keep it outside all year round, or in spring and summer, I recommend that you give it the care that I will comment on now:
Put it in partial shade at first
During the first weeks, it will be important that it be placed in a very bright place but sheltered from direct sunlight.. When time passes and you see that it grows without problems, expose it little by little and gradually to the direct light of the king of stars; Unsurprisingly, in its natural habitat, it grows like this, exposed to the sun.
Plant it in the ground if the climate is mild
To better withstand the winter, it is better to plant it in the garden in the spring. Do like me and put it in an area where it can be protected from the wind if said season is cool (not cold), with temperatures around 15, 10, 5 degrees Celsius. But be careful: if there is going to be frost, the best thing to do is to keep it in a pot with a universal substrate (on sale here).
Give it moderate watering
It is important to water it regularly. It can’t stand drought, so you don’t have to let the soil dry out completely.. But he doesn’t like water too much either, so I recommend checking the soil moisture with a stick. Here you have more information:
Pay so you don’t miss a thing
It must be done either with a liquid fertilizer like this if it is in a pot, or with powdered fertilizer if, on the contrary, it is planted in the garden. In all cases, you must follow the instructions on the packaging.
So you can keep your dracaena marginata outside, at least until the return of winter.