Friday, October 13, 2006

The Amazing Tropical Corn Plant!



The Corn Plant or Janette-Craig is a tropical plant that can grow to at least 13' high. It can be reproduced though cuttings. Simply cut a shoot like the one in the picture below. You can soak in water until roots emerge, or you can use a growth hormone and simply plant it in potting soil. The Corn Plant is very popular in the home and in offices as it thrives in medium to lower light. The scientific name of this green and white beauty is massangeana. It can grow outdoors in the southern parts of the USA. Any comments? Post them below if you like!


You can learn more about Tropical Plants Here!

24 comments:

  1. I love corn plants! They are so low maintenance and give a tropical feeling to a room. I have a huge grafted one that has been around for almost 5 years and I neglect it here and there.

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  2. Hey thanks for the comments! The corn plant on the bottom I have had for 5 years so I can only imagine how old it really is. It does bring the feeling of the outdoors inside with such a tall tree. Spider plants are great too, did you know that they are proven by NASA as one of the best plants that filters the air?

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  3. Hi! I'm from Chile and here we call "Palo de agua" to those plants.It means something like "Water stick"....mmmmm I don't konow how translate it! anyway, I love plants and I'm very happy checking your site.

    Greetings from here!!

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  4. Connie5:58 PM

    Help!!!! My fiance' bought me a couple of what I "think" are Corn Plants...only thing is I keep hearing how easy they are to grow but... I think mine are dead or dying. I love these plants and they are so pretty. They were all green and full. Now they're leaves are getting brown and falling off. I don't know what I'm doing wrong. Please help!! Anybody!!!

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  5. They are quite easy to grow... Normally the problem is too much direct sun or too much water... You can also clip off the dead leaves to help keep the corn plant healthy. You might want to get some fertilizer sticks to put in the plant too... I hope this helps, good luck!

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  6. sherry in houston9:28 PM

    I have had a corn plan for over 20 years, several years ago it broke off when moving, it was tall, now only a small stalk for the past several years. How do I get it to grow bigger again? I have in a pot in the house. New soil.
    don't over water.

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  7. Sherry, you are on the right track... These plants seem to grow very slowly so I think time is the only thing that will really help... You can fertilize them ever one in a while this will help keep them healthy, I normally use the miracle grow sticks. I hope this helps

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  8. I love my corn plant, but I can't seem to keep it healthy. I have two stalks. The leaves on the bigger stalk fell off, leaving these brown shoot like things. The smaller stalk has leaves with browwn on the tips. The plant is not in direct sun, and I water when the soil is dry. How can i get new shoots to grow on the taller stalk? Help me!!

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  9. Well temperature could be an issue, make sure that it gets lots of indirect light and warmer temperatures.... Remember these are tropical plants so this might help. Plus be sure to remove all the dead leaves this will help encourage new growth. You can also fertilize them with the miracle grow sticks. I hope this helps.

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  10. smelly flower8:28 PM

    I have have had my plant for aprox. 4years. Last week just a few days after Christmas, I and my family noticed a very sweet lily like smell in the house, after awhile I discovered a long vine coming from the top of my 13' plant and on the vine were 17 clusters of white flowers with a strong odour. Has anyone ever heard of this?

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  11. Smellys freind8:32 PM

    Hello Smelly I have had the same thing happen to me :)

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  12. This happened to my corn plant as well... I researched it a bit when it happened and apparently they bloom about every 7 years or more depending on the circumstances. The odor is VERY strong though, but they are quite beautiful little flowers...

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  13. Anonymous2:34 PM

    Our corn plant is becoming long and spindley. The bottom leaves have turned brown and have been trimmed off but there is new growth at the top. Is there a way to fatten up the stem to make it sturdier?

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  14. Anonymous5:15 PM

    Help!! me please i have four corn plants but they will not grow they stay brown and droopy!! i bought flower pots that you have to put the water at the bottom and still they will not grow. the dirt do not look like dirt it is a little white crusty looking i put miracle grow in and new soil. please help these plants just wont grow!! Im starting to think i just cant grow plants! lol

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  15. You can try to fatten up the stem by limiting the light area... For example if it is inside make sure that they light reaches the top of the plant, but not much higher... It will naturally try to stay towards were the light is and this should help fatten up your corn plant.

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  16. Try spraying the leaves with a bit of water and try watering them from the top, it is possible the roots aren't reaching the water if you are watering them from the bottom.

    Don't give up, there is a green thumb in all of us : )

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  17. Anonymous8:03 PM

    I have a 10' tall corn plant that I rescued 6 years ago from a garden center that was trashing it. I used to put it outside for the summer but since it's gotten so tall I don't move it. It is now blooming! Wow what a fabulous scent. Wish I could bottle it and wear it as a parfume!

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  18. Anonymous7:45 AM

    Hi,
    I rescued a Sad Corn Plant a year ago, it's thriving really well, but I'm really tempted to plant it outside? Will it cope with English temperatures?
    I'd be most grateful for any advice please,
    Many thanks

    Soraya

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  19. Anonymous11:28 PM

    My house smells so good. My corn plant has outdone itself. It has three flowers/blooms on one stalk this year! It usually only has one bloom a year at Christmas so this is a bonus to us. It seems to love my neglect, summers on our shaded deck, and winters in the unheated jacuzzi room in a east window. I have had it for 10 years and it has bloomed at least 5 times in spite of my lack of care.

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  20. Anonymous7:37 PM

    Mom of Plants needs Help!!!!
    My puppies got a hold of my plant!! I want badly to save it. Due to special reasons. All of the leaves have been shredded and I'm not seeing anything else grow!!!! Plz tell me I can do something plz.

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  21. I would say cut off all the remaining dead stuff around the leaves and just keep watering it like you normally do... I would think if you just lost the leaves you should be alright. When I moved from my house we had the back of our plant in the open bed of a truck and a lot of the leaves got shredded. We just cut off the dead parts of the leaves and it came back just fine. Hopefully this will be the same in your case... Good luck : )

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  22. Anonymous4:15 PM

    Hi. ? Can the trunk of a corn plant be cut to start a new one?? I believe mine has died because no leaves have grown.... plus I have another tropical plant.and it can be cut frm the trunk top and bottom, I wandered if the corn plant was like tht as well.....
    thx: )

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  23. Yes it can be cut and a new one will grow... You can also cut the tops off and soak them in water until roots grow to start another plant.

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  24. Anonymous12:30 AM

    I do not understand how it grows? I helped my brother pick out a plant and I showed him the corn plant and he bought it and he is doing good with it but i do not understand how to stalk grows? Also, when a new bulb of leaves starts to sprout does it just start to peak out and look like a black dot?

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