Question
How do you control height of corn plant?  Mine is about 14 yrs. old with 2 stems and now over 6 1/2 feet tall (only have 8' ceiling!).  Plant is healthy, has been repotted twice (last time was 15 months ago), with an occasional leaf turning brown (should corn plants be kept out of direct sun?).

If i simply cut it down, can the cut stalk(s) be rooted (and what medium should be used?).  How far down can it be cut and will the remaining portion then promote addtional stalks to grow?

Thanks for your help!!

Answer
Hello Jim,

The occasional leaf turning brown is nothing to worry about as long as new leaves are growing back. It's just the plants way of adapting to changes in its environment. Move a ficus plant about 6 inches in any direction and you'll see what i mean :). Direct morning or late evening sun should be ok but afternoon sun may burn the leaves.

If you cut your corn plant down you can root the stems you cut off as well as keep the lower stems which will begin to branch again. Be careful about watering the plant after all the leaves are gone. It wont be using as much water without leaves and you also shouldn't fertilize.
To root the severed stems you can use any house plant mix (i use miracle grow mix) that's mostly peat and organic matter. There are 3 methods you could use to root them as well.
First, you could simply stick the stems into slightly moist soil. Keep it slightly moist and in a warm place. After about a month it should grow roots.
The second method is using cane cuttings. You would use this if you wanted to have more than one plant or just wanted some backups.
Cane cutting is about half way down the page.
http://www.hort.purdue.edu/ext/HO-37web.html

The third method is airlayering. Air layering is a little more time intensive and complicated but the new plant will already have roots when it is planted in the ground giving it a better chance of surviving.  

http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/extension/ornamentals/airlayer/airlayer.html

Good luck,
Justin