Question
QUESTION: Hello,
 I have 3 Anita Draceana plants that were doing very well up until about 3 weeks ago. Then is when I first noticed the tips of the leaves starting to turn brown and dry out. I water them once a week and they are planted in miracle grow potting soil(water smart version). Today, I noticed one of them had a bunch of dead small white worms on the surface of the soil, yet that particular one is the one doing the best(even though it has some brown tipped leaves, too). How can I fix this problem? Sorry, no pics.

ANSWER: Hi Deb! Brown tips mean the plant is being kept too wet and you have some root rot. It needs to get nearly dry between waterings. Insert a bamboo skewer into the soil big enough to go all the way down. Cut it off a half inch above the surface of the soil. When you think it is time to water pull out the skewer and check it. If it is wet more than 1/4th of the way up it is not time to water. You don't want it totally dry but 3/4ths of it dry. This time of year we have shorter days and our plants go semi dormant. They do not use as much water so you need to cut back on the amount you give them and the frequency that you water them. I also do not reccommend miracle grow potting soil water smart version. That is for people that only water once or twice a month. If you water regularly you do not need things in the soil to hold more water, it keeps plants too wet. When you do water you also need to empty the drain tray under the plant an hour after you water. Anita Draceana plants are not swamp plants. Leaving water in the trays will rot the roots. They will slowly come back. Good luck.

Darlene

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thanks for the info, Darlene! But, what about the little white dead worms? All 3 plants were potted in the same soil, but only one of them has the worms(they look more like centipedes about an inch long)and they  aren't anywhere else or in any other plant soil.  

Answer
There may have been a couple of eggs in the soil when you bought it that survuved the steriliztion. Or they may be the larva of a flying insect that landed in your plant and laid eggs.  As long as they are dead I wouldn't worry about it. If you see live insects or worms in the soil water the plant with rubbing alcohol. It will kill any worm or insect on contact and not harm the plants roots. Keeping the plant dryer will not promote insects or worms.