About
Cordyline fruticosa 'Amabilis' is an upright, clumping shrub that can reach heights of up to 1.2 meters. Its leaves are broad and strap-like, displaying a glossy sheen with a mix of bronze and red tones, featuring white and pink speckles as they mature. This plant serves well as a foliage houseplant.
About the genus
Cordyline consists of evergreen shrubs or tree-like perennials that resemble palms. These plants feature clusters or tufts of long, narrow, leathery leaves and produce fragrant, cup-shaped flowers in terminal panicles, which are succeeded by small, round berries.
Growing conditions
- Sunlight
- Full sun, Partial shade
- Soil type
- Loam, Sand
- Soil pH
- Acid, Alkaline, Neutral
- Soil moisture
- Moist but well-drained
- Aspect
- East-facing, South-facing, West-facing
- Exposure
- Sheltered
- UK hardiness
- H1B
Plant details
- Plant type
- Houseplants
- Habit
- Columnar upright
- Foliage
- Evergreen
- Height
- 1-1.5 metres
- Spread
- 0.5-1 metres
- Time to full height
- 2-5 years
- Suggested uses
- Houseplants, Sub-tropical
Care notes
- Cultivation
- Grow in pots of peat-free multipurpose compost in bright filtered light. Water moderately while in growth and apply a balanced liquid feed monthly; water sparingly in winter. Mist daily to increase humidity and occasionally wipe dust from the leaves with a soft cloth. Top dress annually and pot on every 2-3 years in spring. See cordyline cultivation for further information
- Pruning
- No pruning required
- Propagation
- Propagate by cuttings (with the top leaves attached), or stem section cuttings (taking care to keep the sections the right way up)
- Pest resistance
- May be susceptible to glasshouse red spider mite and scale insects
- Disease resistance
- May be susceptible to cordyline slime flux and honey fungus (rarely)