Why is your firm called Dragontree?
There is an imposing Dracaena in Tenerife that the people call the ‘dragon tree’. Some Dracaena varieties have red sap, which people used to think was dragon’s blood.

Are these ‘dragon plants’ friendly?
Of course they are. A Dracaena is the ideal plant for working couples, easy to care for and really tough. As long as you keep it out of strong sunlight and water it once a week it will last for years.

What is it that makes you passionate about Dracaena?
A Dracaena is never boring. There is plenty of variety in terms of colour and leaf shape alone. When we started growing them 25 years ago, there were only about 3 varieties. Now there is something for every taste.

Does your wife like Dracaena?
My wife is an even bigger fan than I am. I can hardly move at home without coming face to face with a Dracaena. A different plant might make a nice change.

What are you most proud of?
One of the first plants we cross bred was Dracaena ‘Kanzi’. We developed the ‘Malaika line’ from this. The Malaikas are still unique, they are fuller and have shorter leaves.

Is the Dracaena trendy?
If you consider that it takes at least ten years to breed a new variety, you will understand that it is impossible for me to anticipate the trends of tomorrow. It is possible to vary the number of stems and the size of the plant and this makes each plant look different.

From dragon tree to lucky charm
The sword shaped leaves of Dracaena generally exhibit parallel coloured stripes. There are green and variegated cultivars. Varieties such as D. cinnabari and D. draco have red sap, which gives them their name of 'dragon tree'. D. sanderiana Lucky Bamboo is a very special variety and is considered a lucky charm in the Far East. The stems are traded as cut flowers and as houseplants, generally arranged in circles and sometimes even in stacked layers.

Dragon mountain Dracaena fragrans Massangeana (21449) with deeply planted Dracaena fragrans Compacta Grp ‘Compacta’ (21377) as rough undergrowth.	Fireworks Unusually packaged Dracaena marginata Bicolor (21534) decorated with white sisal, pins and skeleton leaf.

‘Tiny Fantasy’ (7781) The first mini marginata, no taller than 15 cm!	‘Malaika’ (19232) Fabulous yellow and white variegated, compact fragrans with broad leaves.

‘Yellow Coast’ (26686) Yellow variegated, standard fragrans; easy to care for.	Pleomele (9314) Striking striped thalioides with its leaves arranged in a rosette.

Tiny’ (9275) Variegated mini marginatas with knotted stems; an attractive gift!	‘Riki’ (21458) Yellow variegated, narrow leafed fragrans with several stems and tufts.

‘Cintho’ (24438) Another yellow variegated fragrans, which will also thrive in shade.	‘Anita’ (9314) Branching reflexa with delicate leaves, in a modern, woven basket.