Dracaena RUSCACEAE

C. C. Walker

Dracaena Vandelli ex Linné (Syst. Nat., ed. 12, 2: terminal, racemose, often paniculate; Ped articulated
246, 1767). Type: Asparagus draco Linné. — at the middle; Fl 1 to few in fascicles, nocturnal
Dracaenoideae — Lit: Marrero & al. (1998: sys- and usually highly fragrant; Per to 5 cm long,
tematics Canary Islands); Walker (1999: introduc- white or greenish with purple tinges, basally tu-
tion); Lu & Morden (2014: molecular phylogeny); bular with 6 free lobes; St 6, inserted at the throat
Lebrun & Stork (2014: 213–227, synopsis tropi- of the perianth tube; Ov superior, ovoid, sessile,
cal Africa). Distr: Predominantly tropical Africa, 3-locular; Sti capitate; Fr globose, baccate, fleshy;
Macaronesia, S Arabia, Socotra, Madagascar, SE Se 1–3, testa thick, sometimes pulpy.
Asia, 2 spp. in C America and Cuba. Etym: Lat. A genus of 80 species, but apparently with
‘draco, draconis’, female dragon (from Gr. ‘drakon’, hundreds of redundant synonyms. According to
dragon); from the vernacular name of D. draco, Bos (1984) and Bos (1998), Dracaena is close to
“Dragon’s Blood Tree”, which is based on the red and probably not separable from Sansevieria; this
exudate of the bruised stems. proposal was confirmed by Lu & Morden (2014).
Several species are extremely widely cultivated as
Incl. Pleomele Salisbury (1796). Type: Aletris houseplants, particularly attractive as variegated
fragrans Linné [lectotype, selected by N. E. cultivars. The genus is of minor interest to succu-
Brown, Kew Bull. 1914(8): 274, 1914]. lent plant growers since small plants of the few
Incl. Nemampsis Rafinesque (1838). Type: xerophytic species are relatively uninspiring and
Nemampsis ternifolia Rafinesque [nom. illeg., slow-growing, in contrast to the impressive bulky
= Dracaena surculosa Lindley, fide ING]. specimens of mature trees. Only a few species
with pachycaul stems are covered here, and of
Woody shrubs or trees, sometimes with massive these, only D. draco is frequently cultivated.
trunks; bark smooth, often with prominent leaf D. draco and D. cinnabari are the “Dragon’s
scars; R usually bright orange; L usually spirally Blood Trees”, the dried red resinous sap (used in
arranged, often in dense Ros at branch tips, tough varnishes etc.) of which was of economic impor-
and fibrous to coriaceous, smooth, often variegated, tance and at one time Socotra’s major export item.
sessile or petiolate, ensiform or oblong, entire; Inf The small group of dragon tree species, con-
sisting of D. draco and its allies, has an interest-
ing disjunct distribution in Macaronesia, NE
Africa and Arabia (see Walker (1999: Fig. 2)).
C. C. Walker (*)
The recently described 16 million-year-old fossil,
School of Environment, Earth and Ecosystem Sciences,
The Open University, Milton Keynes, England D. tayfunii, has characters in common with
e-mail: c.walker702@btinternet.com modern-day dragon trees: terminal leaf rosetttes,
© Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature 2020 1337
U. Eggli, R. Nyffeler (eds.), Illustrated Handbook of Succulent Plants: Monocotyledons,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-662-56486-8_27
1338 C. C. Walker

ensiform leaves with conspicuously dilated bases, paniculata Schinz (1894) (nom. inval., Art. 34.1b?);
and strongly papillate leaf epidermis with sunken incl. Dracaena transvaalensis Baker (1904).
stomata. This fossil originated from Miocene de- [2] Small tree, not always branched, to 5 m; L in
posits in W Anatolia, from which it was postulated terminal Ros, narrow to broadly strap-shaped, with
that modern-day dragon trees with xeromorphic fea- a short flaring sheath, 50–100  2.5–11 cm, bright
tures may have originated from a W Eurasian mesic to greyish-green, margins white, cartilaginous; Inf
lineage (Denk & al. 2014). erect, to >1 m; Fl in groups of 1–4, greenish-white,
Jankalski (2008) divided the genus into three 25–35 ( 42) mm; Ped 5–10 mm; Tep  1.5 as
subgenera: long as the tube; Fr globose, usually 1-seeded,
lobed when 2- or 3-seeded, 7–19 mm ∅, red or
[1] Subgen. Dracaena: Fl stellate with a very orange.
short tube to 2 mm; Inf an erect panicle; Fil Widely distributed in S Africa, but of limited
thickened near the middle. 14 spp. but not interest here in terms of its borderline succulence.
all considered succulent. In the phylogenetic Wyk & Wyk (1997) and Jaarsveld (2016) argue
tree of Lu & Morden (2014), the dragon tree that D. transvaalensis should be accepted as sep-
species are not clustered into a single clade, arate species, being confined to exposed arid
suggesting the relationship is not as close as places in the Limpopo and Mpumalanga provinces,
previously indicated. differing from D. aletriformis s.s. by greyish stiff
[2] Subgen. Pleomele (Salisbury) Jankalski 2008 leaves and papillate fruits.
( Pleomele Salisbury 1796): Fl salverform
with a slender tube, white or greenish, often D. cinnabari Balfour fil. (Trans. Roy. Soc. Edin-
purple tinged; Inf an erect to pendent brac- burgh 30: 623, 1882). Type: not typified. — Lit:
teate panicle or thyrse; Fil terete. Over Beyhl (1995b); Miller & Morris (2004: 51, 235);
60 spp. (only 1 treated here with borderline both with ills.; Brown & Mies (2012: conservation).
succulence). Distr: Yemen (Socotra); endemic. I: Walker (1999:
[3] Subgen. Chrysodracon Jankalski 2008: Fl tu- 171, Fig. 1). – Fig. 1.
bular-funnelform with a broad tube, yellow; Inf [1] Trees with stout trunks to 10 m, dichoto-
a pendent foliaceous panicle; Fil flattened, mously branched with regular semiglobose dense
subulate. About 7 spp. (none treated here). Lu crown; L 30–60  2–3 cm, erect, rigid, ensiform
& Morden (2014) elevated this group to generic with broadened base, sessile, dark green; Inf
status as Chrysodracon (Jankalski) P.-L. Lu & paniculate, well-branched; Fl in groups of 2–4;
Morden. Ped 5 mm; Per to 5 mm long, cup-shaped, cream;
St slightly shorter than the perianth; Sty filiform;
D. aletriformis (Haworth) Bos (in Leistner & Sti capitate; Fr globose, fleshy, 10–15 mm ∅,
al. (ed.), Fl. South Afr. 5(3): 3, 1992). Type [neo]: ripening red to black.
RSA, Eastern Cape (Drège 4494a [K, G, MO, P]). This species belongs to an informally recog-
— Lit: Bos (1992: 3). Distr: RSA (Eastern Cape, nized group within the genus, the “dragon
KwaZulu Natal, Mpumalanga, Limpopo), Swazi- trees”. They are all thick-stemmed trees with
land, Moçambique, Kenya, Tanzania; coastal bush dichotomous branching. Leaves are crowded
to montane evergreen to semi-deciduous forests. into dense rosettes at the branch tips. D. draco
I: Wyk & Wyk (1997: 55); Jaarsveld (2016). differs from D. cinnabari in its compressed ensi-
 Yucca aletriformis Haworth (1831); incl. form leaves, smaller bracteoles, greenish peri-
Cordyline rumphii Hooker (1847) (nom. illeg., Art. anth segments, and shorter anthers. D. ombet
52.1); incl. Dracaena hookeriana K. Koch (1861) and D. serrulata have a less robust habit, more
 Draco hookeriana (K. Koch) Kuntze (1891)  slender panicle branches, and longer pedicels.
Pleomele hookeriana (K. Koch) N. E. Brown However, the assumed close relationship is not
(1914); incl. Dracaena latifolia Regel (1871); incl. confirmed by Lu & Morden (2014), who showed
Dracaena rumphii Regel (1871); incl. Sansevieria that only D. draco, D. ellenbeckiana and
Dracaena RUSCACEAE 1339

cinnabar red refers to the colour of the stem exu-

date: scarlet with a slight hint of orange. Outside of
Socotra this species is rarely cultivated, in contrast
to D. draco.

D. draco (Linné) Linné (Syst. Nat., ed. 12, 2:

246, 1767). Type: [lecto — icono:] Clusius, Rar. Pl.
Hist. 1: 1, “Draco”, 1601. — Distr: Canary Islands,
Madeira, Cape Verde Islands, Morocco.
 Asparagus draco Linné (1762); incl. Yucca
draco Carrière (1859).

D. draco ssp. ajgal Benabid & Cuzin (Compt.

Rend. Acad. Sci. Paris, Sér. 3, Sci. Vie 320: 270,
1997). Type: Morocco (Benabid & Cuzin s.n.
[RAB]). — Distr: Morocco (W Anti-Atlas); mixed
open woodland, quartzite cliffs in gorges. I: Plant
Talk 12: 18, 1998; Audissou (1999); Bensusan &
al. (2015).
[1] Differs from ssp. draco: L smaller, 60 
3 cm; Ped of Fl shorter, 1–4 mm; Per yellowish-
white, tube campanulate, shorter, 1–2 mm; Tep
shorter, 7–8 mm; Anth yellow.
This taxon was only discovered in 1996 as a
Fig. 1 Dracaena cinnabari. (Copyright: A. Miller) population consisting of thousands of trees on
quartzite cliffs in inaccessible gorges in the W
D. serrulata are in a common clade, together with part of the Anti-Atlas mountains in Morocco E
several shrubby taxa. of Tiznit. This discovery is highly significant, in
D. cinnabari is the most famous and distinctive view of the severely endangered status of ssp.
plant on Socotra, where it has a widespread but draco in the Canary Islands.
fragmented distribution, forming dense forests on
the high plateaux, notably the Haggeher moun- D. draco ssp. caboverdeana Marrero Rodriguez
tains. Its distribution pattern closely matches areas & R. S. Almeida (Int. J. Geobot. Res. 2: 36, ills.
receiving frequent low cloud, rain and drizzle dur- (pp. 39–40), 2012). Type: Cape Verde Islands,
ing the monsoon (Miller & Morris 2004). Studies Santo Antão (Marrero & al. s.n. [LPA, LPA]). —
of population age structure and plant growth esti- Distr: Cape Verde Islands (Santo Antão, São
mates indicate that the species is not regenerating to Nicolau, Fogo); sclerophyllous forests, windward
any significant extent — referred to as “population slopes of the islands, 50–1400 m.
overmaturity” (Adolt & Pavlis 2004; Habrova & [1] Differs from ssp. draco: Stem with low aspect
al. 2009; Adolt & al. 2012). This has led to an and short trunk, 4–6 m, crown dense; L shorter
extrapolation of a 45% loss of populations by and narrower, 67.4  14.6  3.6  0.48 cm, blue-
2080 (Attorre & al. 2007). Consequently the spe- glaucous, lamina flat to slightly canaliculate, hardly
cies can be considered to be severely endangered. flexible; Fr larger, 14.94  0.62 mm ∅.
It has an extensive range of uses: food for This taxon was recognised as distinct follow-
humans and livestock, timber, fibre, etc. Commer- ing a study of qualitative and quantitative charac-
cially it is the famed dragon’s blood resin for which ters of a sampling of plants in the 3 main areas of
the plant is renowned with uses as a dye, in med- distribution of D. draco: Canary Islands/Madeira,
icines and cosmetics. The specific name meaning Anti-Atlas Mts. of Morocco, and the Cape Verde
1340 C. C. Walker

Fig. 2 Dracaena draco

ssp. draco. (Copyright:
C. C. Walker)

Islands. Key features of ssp. caboverdeana are the population still remains in the Barranca del Infierno,
shape of the plant, with a short trunk but densely Tenerife (Lodé 2010a). D. draco is now extensively
branched canopy, esp. the colour and size of cultivated in gardens in frost-free climates, but is
the leaves, and the size of the fruit. This leaves slow growing as a pot plant. Leroy (2004) pro-
ssp. draco restricted to the Canary Islands and vides advice on cultivation, notably on raising
Madeira. the plant from seed. Mature specimens are pre-
sumed to be of great age and a famous specimen at
D. draco ssp. draco — Lit: Beyhl (1995a); Orotava on Tenerife, blown down by a storm in
Lodé (2010b); both with ills. Distr: Canary Islands 1868, was 21 m tall and 15 m ∅ at the base of the
(Tenerife, Gran Canaria, La Palma), Madeira. I: trunk, and was estimated to be 6,000 years old.
Bramwell & Bramwell (2001: 395); Leroy (2004); Mägdefrau (1975) has shown, however, that an
Lodé (2010b: 191, 193, 195). – Fig. 2. age of a few hundred years is much more reason-
[1] Trees to 20 m tall; trunk silvery-grey, able. Krawczyszyn & Krawczyszyn (2016) inves-
smooth; Br dichotomously branched forming a tigated the effect of sunlight on photomorpho-
semiglobose crown; L linear-lanceolate, sessile, genesis in D. draco and concluded that this is a
glaucous, coriaceous, to 110 cm  4 cm, in dense key environmental factor in growth, flowering
terminal Ros; Inf paniculate; Fl in groups of 4–5; and shaping of these trees with unidirectional
Ped 5–10 mm; Per white, pink, crimson to light producing deformed trees.
greenish-white, tube campanulate, 1.5–4 mm; Tep Marrero (2013) reports a fossil with an estimated
7–11 mm; Anth greenish; Fr globose berries, to age of 3–3.9 million years from Gran Canaria.
13.59  0.85 mm ∅, red-orange.
See D. cinnabari for relationships. This is the D. ellenbeckiana Engler (Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 32:
“Dragon Tree” of the Canary Islands, critically 95, 1903). Type: Ethiopia, Harar Prov. (Ellenbeck
endangered in the wild. Almeida Pérez (2003a) 1232 [B]). — Distr: E Ethiopia, Kenya, N
confirms the existence of both D. draco and Uganda; semi-evergreen bushland or open dry
D. tamaranae on Gran Canaria, where D. draco forest on rocky slopes, 1050–2100 m. I: Bally
is confined to canyons in the NE, with specimens (1967: Figs. 1–2); Mwachala & Mbugua (2007:
estimated to be 210–220 years old. A healthy 5); Sebsebe Demissew & Nordal (2010: 277–278).
Dracaena RUSCACEAE 1341

Incl. Dracaena ellenbeckii hort. (s.a.) (nom. allies, although it is not truly xeromorphic. In Lu &
inval., Art. 61.1). Morden (2014) this was included as Dracaena
[1] Large shrubs 3–6 m tall, dichotomously sp. 1. Geograhically, it is remote from D. draco
branching to form many-stemmed clumps; Br and other arborescent taxa, being endemic to C
4–8 cm ∅; L 35–55  1–2.2 cm, often restricted and NE Thailand where it is known as “Chan
to the branch tips, ensiform, coriaceous, glabrous, daeng”. It occurs in association with Pandanus,
entire, base amplexicaul, sessile; Inf paniculate; succulent spiny Euphorbia and Cycas spp. A pre-
Fl 2–7 together in cymose groups; Ped 3–5 mm; liminary assessment of its conservation status is as
Per to 10 mm, Tep linear-oblong, 10  1.8–2 mm; endangered. A tonic drink is made from the dried
St slightly shorter than the perianth; Ov longitudi- red sap and it is used in horticulture in Thailand
nally ribbed; Sty cylindrical, 3  0.5 mm; Sti (Wilkin & al. 2012).
capitate; Fr subglobose, 4–10  4–10 mm, turning
from green over red to dark purple; Se globose, D. ombet Kotschy & Peyritsch (Pl. Tinn., 47,
4–5 mm ∅, ivory-white. 1867). Type: [lecto — icono]: l.c., frontispiece. —
Best described as a woody xerophyte rather Lit: Bos & Teketay (1997); Sebsebe Demissew &
than a succulent. Vernacular name: “Ol Kedong”. Nordal (2010). Distr: SE Egypt, Sudan, Eritrea,
The Kedong Valley in Kenya is named after this Ethiopia, Djibouti, Somalia.
locally abundant Dracaena. Used by the Masai  Draco ombet (Kotschy & Peyritsch) Kuntze
for arrow quivers. (1891).

D. jayniana Wilkin & Suksathan (Kew Bull. 67 D. ombet ssp. ombet — Distr: SE Egypt,
(4): 698–703, ills., 2012). Type: Thailand, Korat Sudan, Eritrea, N Ethiopia, Djibouti, Somalia;
Prov. (Kerr 9989 [K, BM, C, L, P]). — Distr: C & bushland and woodland, usually on limestone,
NE Thailand; hilltops of limestone karsts, in sea- 1000–1800 m. I: Sebsebe Demissew & Nordal
sonally deciduous vegetation. (2010: 281, Fig. 123).
[1] Trees to 5 ( 8) m tall, stems to 10 cm ∅ at [1] Trees to 4 m; Br thick, dichotomously
the base, bark pale brown to grey-brown; Br branched, forming a semiglobose crown; L crowded,
basal with 3–5 erect stems; L in dense terminal to 60  3 cm, often restricted to the branch tips, rigid,
clusters, coriaceous, sheath elliptic to ovate to glabrous throughout, ensiform, succulent and to
6  4 cm, lamina linear-acuminate, dark green, 1 cm thick, margins smooth, entire, tip acute, lamina
40–75  0.5–1.3 cm, all but the youngest leaves widened abruptly to a clasping amplexicaul base
curved near the base, apex pendent; Inf erect to 2 as wide as long; Inf paniculate, much
ascending, paniculate, fertile axis to 50 cm long branched, glabrous, to 0.5 m; Fl 2–7 together in
with 4 orders of branching; Fl in groups of up cymose groups; Ped glabrous or pubescent,
to 5; Ped 1.9–4.6 mm; bracteoles to 2 mm; 2–4 mm; Per to 10 mm; Tep linear-oblong, almost
Per dull golden-yellow, membranous and trans- free, whitish, to 10  2 mm; St somewhat shorter
lucent towards the margins, central vein darker; than the perianth; Fil flattened; Ov oblong, shortly
Tep fused at the base to form a very short tube, stipitate; Sty cylindrical; Sti capitate; Fr subglobose
narrowly ovate to oblong, free part 5.6–6  berries, 10–12 mm ∅; Se globose, 6 mm ∅.
1.5–2.1 mm, ITep slightly broader than the OTep; Differs from the rest of the species in the genus
St basally fused to the tepals; Anth pale yellow, to in having succulent leaves. In Ethiopia and Eritrea
1.2  0.4 mm; Ov fusiform-cylindrical, 3.4–3.6  this subspecies grows in open Olea europaea
1.3–1.5 mm; Sty cylindrical, to 2.4  0.7 mm; Sti forest on limestone, and in semi-desert grassland
capitate, trilobulate; Fr (sub-) globose berries, dull with scattered Acacia scrub (Sebsebe Demissew
red when ripe, to 12.7 mm ∅; Se subglobose, to & Nordal 2010).
8.5  7.5 mm.
Morphologically this new species is related to D. ombet ssp. schizantha (Baker) Bos (SINET
the traditional dragon tree group of D. draco and its Ethiopian J. Bot. 1997: 20, 1997). Type: Somalia
1342 C. C. Walker

(Hildebrandt 1472 [K, B?, BM, HBG, K, WAG]). restricted to the highest dry plateaux. It appears to
— Distr: Djibouti, S & SE Ethiopia, Somalia. I: be under extreme pressure with little regeneration
Thulin (1995: t. 1E, as D. ombet); Bos & Teketay because of overgrazing, esp. by camels and leaf
(1997: 78, Fig. 187.6). harvesting for fibres. McCoy & Lavranos report
 Dracaena schizantha Baker (1877); incl. that only plants on steep cliffs retain their normal
Dracaena rhabdophylla Chiovenda (1952). growth habit, and that flowering is very irregular
[1] Differs from ssp. ombet: Trees to 8 m; in the wild. Resin production was not traditionally
L margins scabrid, lamina widened abruptly to a important, but fibres extracted from the leaves are
clasping amplexicaul base 3–4 as wide as used for rope making (Miller & Morris 1988).
long; terminal branches of the Inf pubescent.
In Ethiopia this subspecies grows on mountain D. serrulata ssp. mccoyorum Lavranos (Cact.
slopes, in Acacia – Commiphora bushland on lime- Succ. J. (US) 89(4): 149–151, ills., 2017). Type:
stone, and also in evergreen bushland (Sebsebe Saudi Arabia, Asir Prov. (McCoy 5112 [FT]). —
Demissew & Nordal 2010). The red resin is used Distr: Saudi Arabia (Asir); rocky mountain.
in traditional medicine (Bos & Teketay 1997). [1] Differs from ssp. serrulata: Large many-
branched umbrella-shaped tree 7–8 m; L very
D. serrulata Baker (Bull. Misc. Inform. Kew light grey, margins entire with hyaline edge; Tep
1894: 342, 1894). Type: Yemen (Lunt 206 [K]). tan/beige.
— Distr: Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Oman. The sole, northerly population of ssp. mcco-
yorum is separated from the nearest known popu-
D. serrulata ssp. dhofarica T. A. McCoy & lation of ssp. serrulata by about 250 km
Lavranos (Avonia 35(1): 58–60, ills. (pp. 54, (Lavranos 2017). Endemic to Saudi Arabia
56–60), 2017). Type: Oman, Dhofar (McCoy 4897 where it occurs near the summit of a single moun-
[FT]). — Distr: Oman (Dhofar). I: Miller & Morris tain with unusual geology (tonalite). During
(1988: 17, as D. serrulata). – Fig. 3. 30 years of observation this population has
[1] Differs from ssp. serrulata: L dark green, declined significantly and only a few mature spec-
margins entire with hyaline edge; Tep light pink. imens remain, leading to the imminent danger of
The Dhofar population of D. serrulata is sep- extinction. Threats recorded are mostly due to
arated from the nearest known representatives of human activities: overgrazing, removal of termi-
ssp. serrulata by 500 km (McCoy & Lavranos nal leaves for fodder and removal of larger
2017). In Oman this unusual and distinctive tree is branches for hollowing out to make bee hives.

Fig. 3 Dracaena
serrulata ssp. dhofarica.
(Copyright: B. Jonkers)
Dracaena RUSCACEAE 1343

D. serrulata ssp. serrulata — Lit: Beyhl D. serrulata. All these species have glaucous leaves,
(1999: with ills.). Distr: Saudi Arabia, Yemen. I: minute bracteoles and are not densely branched. In
Collenette (2000: 33, 36–37). contrast to D. tamaranae, D. draco and D. cinnabari
[1] Trees to 5 m (but mostly smaller) with a single have flat, non-glaucous, ensiform leaves and com-
stem, branched above but without well-defined plex inflorescences with several orders of branching.
semiglobose crown; L to 50–100  2–5 cm, glau- D. tamaranae is extremely rare. It grows in
cous-grey, linear-lanceolate, flat in section above, crevices of inaccessible cliffs and canyons in the
convex beneath, margins serrulate, tip acute; Inf arid S and SW of Gran Canaria. The census of
large erect branched panicles, to 1.5 m; Per 4 mm Almeida Pérez (2003b) indicates a total of <100
long, tube cylindrical; Tep fused at the base, narrow, individuals: 63 juveniles, 12 adults and 1 very
spreading, white; Sty filiform; Sti capitate; Ov mature specimen; 10 dead specimens were also
ovoid, 3-celled, with a solitary basal ovule in each; observed, but no seedlings. This confirms the ear-
Fr fleshy, globose, 6 mm ∅, 1- to 3-seeded. lier assessment and status as a critically endangered
Similar to D. cinnabari (see there for details). It species (Marrero & al. 1998).
was first described from specimens collected in
the Wadi Hadramawt, Yemen. It occurs W-wards,
extending N along the Great Arabian Escarpment
of Saudi Arabia. Plants tend to be sparingly bran-
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