Plants 31-40

1.-7. The course plant list includes seven species or varieties of Dracaena, all of which I mention here--four from the deremensis species--Janet Craig, Janet Craig 'Compacta,' "Warneckii," "Lemon Lime"--two from the marginata--marginata and m. 'Colorama,' and the Dracaene fragrans 'Massageana.' When we enter the "Dracaena world," we are in a lot of hurt. Not necessarily because the plants are unattractive or unpopular; indeed, they appear frequently in homes and offices. But we are hurting because we don't know how to classify them. The Wikipedia article indicates that these native African trees and shrubs (almost all species are from Africa; indeed the word deremensis means that it comes from Derema, Tanzania; the word Dracaena is Greek for "female dragon") were traditionally in the Ruscaceae family, but some treatments put them in a family of their own, Dracaenaceae, or even with the Agavaceae. And, depending on where it is placed, it can take other genuses with it, like the Cordyline or the Pleomele. Some day I will have to sort through how we classify things--I think it creates a wonderful theological problem, pointing to the wisdom of God (doesn't want to make things too easy for us to understand) as well as the divine grace. The WSU course puts the Dracaena, as well as the Cordyline in the Dracaenaceae family.* Ultimately I will probably want to sort this out for myself.

[*As a test, I decided to do a brief search on "Cordyline," to see into which family it is placed. The Wikipedia article says "Laxmanniaceae." Stanford Univ. says "same family with Agapanthus, Dracaena, Phormium and Yucca," and that family is...drum roll...Agavaceae. Then, the United States Department of Agriculture lists it among the Liliaceae. Thus, it fits into one of four families, but no one is quite sure which one. Maybe it is like some people--can't really find a family that wants them].

See why we should begin our study with individual exemplars? If we began with families, we might do nothing but fight over it and never really get to the subject of our studies--the plants themselves. Well, let's get to 'em. The Dracaena deremensis 'Janet Craig' (named after the daughter of a nurseryman), grows to 2' or 3' and has full, flooping, slender, green leaves. Though one picture from the WSU course makes it look a bit "empty," another one captures its fulness. The "compact" version speaks for itself--only about 1' tall. Then, the 'Warneckii' cultivar has much more "sword-like" leaves that go off in all different directions. At least that is the way it is portrayed here. Its popular name, "Striped Dracaena," is evident in this picture. Finally, the 'Lemon Lime' Dracaena, as its name suggests, has a narrow longitudinal stripe of dark green, surrounded by stripes of lime green. If everything were this simple, horticulture could be mastered in a day... The Texas A & M website, linked in the WSU course, which provides about 235 pictures of interior plants (after duplicate photos and overlaps with the WSU list are accounted for, the A & M list has 130 plants not in the WSU list--I counted them and made a master list!) also has a few pictures of them.

Let's continue on the Dracaenas. The distinguishing mark of the marginata are its narrow and sharp leaves. But because it is called marginata, we know that it really was named because of its distinct edge. The thin red edges can more easily be seen in this picture. This photo of the 'Colorama' shows its deep red color. Makes it almost look like Phormium which, as we recall, the Stanford Univ. website says was in the same family with it. Sometimes, as this photo shows, the point of the Dracaena 'Colorama' is sharp and, when it is worn off, has a drooping appearance. Finally, the fragrans 'Massageana' looks like this. Can't smell it from the photo--its leaves look pretty much like the deremensis. This picture shows that the leaves of the fragrans are separated up the trunk or stalk of the plant/tree.

8. A brief mention of the Cordyline terminalis is appropriate because most can't decide whether the Dracaeana belongs with it in the same family or not (the WSU course has it listed in the same--Dracaena--family; the A & M site puts it with the Liliaceae; the USDA with the Agavaceae). It is hard for me to get a good "view" of this, since many of the online pictures differ from each other, but suffice it to say that the leaves look a bit more ovate than the slender and more acuminate leaves of the Draceana. Here is a very rich picture of it...the terminalis is most frequently known as the Ti plant.

9. The Jade plant, or Crassula argentea, is a distinctive plant with fleshy green ovate (almost obovate) leaves. The leaves are topped with star-shaped shite flowers. The word crassula connotes the idea of "thickness," and so we see the thick leaves bunched together so that they don't even look like they let light through...Argentea suggests a silvery cast to the plant, which seems right, even though the green is fairly strong. Maybe the "argentea" is the color of the trunk. Need to figure this one out, too...

10. Let's conclude today with the Zebrina pendula. It is traditionally known as the "Wandering Jew," though our politically correct era has softened that to the "Wandering Traveler." The WSU website avoids the issue altogether, as it does in other places ("Mother-in-law Tongue") by just calling it the "Inch Plant." There are other pictures of the leaves which don't show them quite as red. The description is good: "The small, ovate (2") leaves are dark green with 2 broad bands of silver and underneath, a vivid purple color." This would make a great hanging plant or, alternatively, when I "get it together," a member of my "Theology Garden."

We move along and we learn more. That is the key.

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