Ti Plant, Good Luck Plant 'Miscellaneous Ti Cultivars' (Cordyline fruticosa)

Ti Plant, Good Luck Plant 'Miscellaneous Ti Cultivars'
Cordyline fruticosa

Here is a shot of our Hawaiian Ti. It was a gift from a departing neighbor, and was in horrible shape. The leaves were about 2.5" long. Check it out now! A little bit of TLC and some 20-10-10.

That's a pretty good recovery! This wont die so easily. What I did to mine was cut off the long stem. Simply planted it in the ground and it is doing quite well. the main plant is now branching out with 4-5 new sets.

That's great recovery. Can you tell me what kind of "tlc" you used? Mine doesn't look so good and I want to save it.

Kindly decipher/expand TLC for me?

TLC stands for Tender Loving Care
something we all need - not just plants.....WalterT in San Diego, where Ti plants grown outdoors year around. The image is of a young Ti plant grown out of doors but in a pot to keep it away from snails, etc. Photo indoors to bring out all the plant's rosy glory.

My Red Ti plant is now a few weeks older and growing rapidly due to warmer weather. The lower leaves have assumed a dark purple color as new bright red leaves emerge at the top of the plant.
WalterT. 7-23-'04.

It also throws up an inconspicuous bloom on maturity.

I am new to this variety. I purchased my first 9-5-06 and am attempting to keep as an indoor plant. It recieves fairly bright indirect light. What how often should I water/fertelize it and any other advise? It is such a striking plant.The coloration is outstanding. If i was to move it outside I live in zone 9 in Hanford, Ca , Central San Joaquin Valley

This message was edited Oct 17, 2006 12:34 PM

I bought mine in Jul-2006. It's about 4 feet tall and was potted in lava rocks when I got it (still is). It lives on my front porch where it gets filtered morning sun. It is growning very nicely. Last week it produced long pink flowers from each stalk, which was a great addition to the red foliage. Grandpaj, I would think you could grow yours outdoors in the right location, but make sure you bring it in if the temperature goes below 50-55.

I think one of the most important things is not overwater your plant. Make sure it has good drainage. Stick your finger about 1" down in the soil. If it's dry, water and if not, wait. I typically water mine once a week. We have so much salt in our water that I typically drench it, and make sure it drains. We had a few really hot days this summer (99, 100, 105) and the plant needed water more frequently.

Don't put it in direct sun, keep in filtered shade. Don't use leaf shine. Clean the leaves gently with warm water when they get dirty. Their roots are supposed to like being confined so you don't need to replant often.

I understand that they don't need much fertilizer. I fertilized mine very lightly with a balanced liquid fertilizer this summer. I read that sulfate of potash (potassium sulfate) would increase the color, but I have not tried that. If anyone has information on that, please let me know.

Maybe fertilizing lightly could also increase the size of the leaves as well as some richness of colour. Mine is in partial shade as well. So it has a good colour. In summer, it needs water everyday.

When I cut up the potted plant, I did not know what to do. So I just stuck it up into the soil and lo.... here it is surviving well even after 2 years. Look here among the plants. Undisturbed! Shade is plenty for it.