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You can split a dieffenbachia when the pot holds more than one stem, or when small shoots (offsets) have popped up at the base with their own roots. To split a dieffenbachia, slide it out of the pot in spring or early summer, find stems that each have their own roots, ease them apart by … Read more >>
Some of the best houseplants never put on a flower show. Non-flowering plants win you over with texture, shape, and leaf color instead. They also skip the dropped petals and the sticky pollen. In this guide, I’ll explain what truly counts as non-flowering. Then I’ll share 15 easy picks, split between true non-bloomers and foliage … Read more >>
When dieffenbachia leaves start turning brown, the plant is telling you something in its care has slipped. Most brown leaves on a dieffenbachia come from uneven watering, dry indoor air, or too much direct sun, with salt buildup from tap water or fertilizer close behind. Cold drafts, root rot, and leaf spot disease cause the … Read more >>
A garden can feed you, shade your house and give birds a place to land. It can also eat up water, fertilizer, gas and weekends. If you want to create a sustainable garden at home, the goal is simple: grow more while bringing in less from the outside. My advice is to start small and … Read more >>
A leggy dieffenbachia is a fixable problem, and you don’t need to replace the plant. To make dieffenbachia bushy, move it into bright, indirect light, then cut the bare cane back to about 6 inches above the soil, just above a node, in spring or summer so new shoots sprout below the cut. Then root … Read more >>
Yes. Dieffenbachia, often sold as dumb cane, is toxic to both cats and dogs. The ASPCA lists dieffenbachia as toxic to cats and dogs, and one bite of a leaf or stem causes fast, painful burning and swelling in the mouth. The good news is that serious poisoning is rare, because the pain makes most … Read more >>
Yes, dieffenbachia roots well in plain water, and a rooted cutting can stay in water for months. Dieffenbachia can grow in water, but it does best when you root a stem cutting in water and move it to soil once the roots reach 2 to 3 inches long. That’s my advice for most home gardeners. … Read more >>
Dieffenbachia does not die after it flowers. It’s a long-lived perennial that keeps growing new leaves once the bloom fades. You might see a few older leaves yellow afterward, but that comes from age or care problems. The flower itself isn’t the cause. Some plants, like many bromeliads, bloom once and then decline. Dumb cane … Read more >>
Most of the time, a dumb cane droops because of a water problem at the roots. Dieffenbachia drooping is usually caused by soil that has dried out or soil that has stayed soggy long enough to rot the roots, so check the soil 2 inches down before you add any water. Dry soil means a … Read more >>