Question
hello I have a question regarding taking cuttings from a house plant. I think it is a Dracaena ( dragon tree ) other pictures I have seen may indicate it is a  Ali -standard it has long thin leafs with red trim palm like. The stems are a light tan color. Where it has lost leafs it is ribbed.  It has 3 different branches 2 branches are  2-1/2 feet from the ground  kind of arched. The middle branch goes straight up and is now hitting the ceiling ( 8 feet high ) can I safely cut the tallest branch and get it to root by  placing it in water or using rooting hormone without killing the main plant. The stems appear very hard ( wood like )I have done some green house work with other soft stem cuttings and rotting hormones but not like this one. This  plant is very dear to me and would hate to kill it, but its hitting the ceiling and I must do something.  Many years ago my Husky chewed off one of the lower branches it took years for it to recover. I hope you can help me

Answer
Mathew,

Yes, you can cut it off. Personally I like to cut them off and dip them in rooting hormone then place them in the soil beside the original plant, I like the look of 3 dragon trees (Dracaena marginata) in one pot. I would wait till May and that is the optimum time to take cuttings. The plant is going into a growing period when the roots will grow rapidly. The mother plant will grow 2 or more new shoots at the top where you cut it off. I would pinch off any more than two shoots.  If it is still not short enough to suit you then you can cut off a section of trunk in between and even if it has no roots keep track of the lower end and dip that in rooting hormone and also insert it into soil. There is at least a 50% chance that this will root and grow shoots to form a new top also. Then you will have an instant grove planting. You can also put the cuttings in a separate pot of soil if you would prefer. This plant roots easily in the late spring and early summer. Good luck.

Darlene