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Dracaena draco

Canary Islands dragon tree

The Canary Islands dragon tree is a very slow-growing tree that reaches about 15 m in time but takes around 10 years to reach 1.2 m. In the wild it survives on cliffs and inaccessible ravine slopes at about 30–800 m, in warm, dry scrub and thermophilous woodland moistened by trade-wind cloud. At home it needs full sun, a gritty, free-draining mix, and cooler, drier winters.

Dracaena draco
Photo: H. Zell, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
At home, aim for
Day IntermediateTargets in Plantistry
Night Close to the dayTargets in Plantistry
Humidity Dry airBand in Plantistry
Light Full sunDLI and PPFD in Plantistry
Expects a seasonal restGrows in the ground

Where it grows wild

Cliffsides and inaccessible ravine slopes in two zones: the thermophilous woodland belt and the upper part of the tabaibal-cardonal succulent scrub, where the trade winds bring moist air. Truly wild plants are now limited to Tenerife; the last recognised wild tree on Gran Canaria died in 2009.

Literature gives about 30–800 m in the Canary Islands. Recorded elevations are 2–1521 m (median 366 m); the higher records are probably planted trees.

Canary Is.

🔒 Growing it like that

The wild conditions above, turned into targets for a shelf, a tent or a greenhouse. The full profile has:

✓ Day and night temperature targets, and the limits it tolerates
✓ Humidity band, and how to hold it
✓ Light as DLI and PPFD for a grow light
✓ Wet and dry seasons, and whether to rest it
✓ Substrate and airflow
✓ A step-by-step setup to grow it like the wild

Grow Dracaena draco? Add it to a free garden and its full profile opens. Pro opens all 38,374 profiles in the library, plants and fungi.

Profiles are drafts built from measured range and climate and from published sources; each section carries its own confidence in the app. Photo from Wikimedia Commons, used under its CC BY-SA 3.0 licence, unmodified.