Other Names:  False Dracaena

Description:

Young leaves on this variety begin dark red, then mature to deep burgundy with a purple cast; spectacular when massed on the landscape; perfect for adding a lush, tropical feel to the garden or indoors

Ornamental Features

Cardinal Cordyline is primarily valued in the garden for its ornamental upright and spreading habit of growth. Its attractive sword-like leaves emerge dark red in spring, turning burgundy in color the rest of the year.

Landscape Attributes

Cardinal Cordyline is an open multi-stemmed evergreen tropical plant with an upright spreading habit of growth. Its relatively coarse texture can be used to stand it apart from other garden plants with finer foliage.

This plant will require occasional maintenance and upkeep, and should never be pruned except to remove any dieback, as it tends not to take pruning well. It has no significant negative characteristics.

Cardinal Cordyline is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Accent
• Mass Planting
• General Garden Use
• Container Planting
• Hanging Baskets

Planting & Growing

This plant is native to the tropics and prefers growing in moist environments with evenly warm conditions all year round. In our climate, it is usually grown as an outdoor annual in the garden or in a container. If you want it to survive the winter, it can be brought in to the house and provided with special care, and then returned to the garden the following season. In its preferred tropical habitat, it can grow to be around 3 feet tall at maturity, with a spread of 4 feet. However, when grown as an annual or when overwintered indoors, it can be expected to perform differently, and its exact height and spread will depend on many factors; you may wish to consult with our experts as to how it might perform in your specific application and growing conditions.

This plant does best in full sun to partial shade. It does best in average to evenly moist conditions, but will not tolerate standing water. It is not particular as to soil type or pH, and is able to handle environmental salt. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution. This particular variety is an interspecific hybrid.

Cardinal Cordyline is a fine choice for the garden, but it is also a good selection for planting in outdoor containers and hanging baskets. With its upright habit of growth, it is best suited for use as a 'thriller' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination; plant it near the center of the pot, surrounded by smaller plants and those that spill over the edges. It is even sizeable enough that it can be grown alone in a suitable container. Note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.

-- THIS IS A TROPICAL PLANT AND SHOULD NOT BE EXPECTED TO SURVIVE THE WINTER OUTDOORS IN OUR CLIMATE --