Want color in the landscape without waiting on flowers? Cordylines deliver it with their leaves. The best known is the Hawaiian ti plant, Cordyline fruticosa, with glossy leaves in green, red, pink, purple and burgundy. It grows as a houseplant almost anywhere and outdoors in the warmest parts of the country.
Its cousin from New Zealand, the cabbage tree (Cordyline australis), takes more cold and shows up in patio pots and coastal gardens. This guide covers both, plus a few newer cordylines you’ll see at garden centers.
One thing first: cordylines look a lot like dracaenas, but they are not the same plant. More on that below.
Cordyline Quick Care Tips
- Genus: Cordyline, in the asparagus family (Asparagaceae)
- Most-grown species: Hawaiian ti plant (Cordyline fruticosa, old name Cordyline terminalis) and cabbage tree (Cordyline australis)
- Common names: Ti plant, Hawaiian ti, good luck plant (C. fruticosa); cabbage tree, cabbage palm (C. australis)
- Hardiness zones: Ti plant 9B to 11B or 10 to 12, depending on the source; cabbage tree 9 to 11
- Light: Ti plant: bright, indirect light indoors, no harsh afternoon sun; cabbage tree: full sun to part shade
- Temperature: Ti plant 65 to 85°F indoors; not below 50°F
- Humidity: Ti plant 40 to 60%
- Water: Ti plant: moist but not wet, less from late fall to late winter; potted cordylines fairly dry in winter
- Water quality: Ti plants are fluoride-sensitive; use rainwater or distilled water if your tap water is fluoridated
- Pests: Mealybugs, scale, spider mites
- Propagation: Stem sections (ti logs), tip cuttings, suckers, seed
- Safety: Ti plant toxic to dogs and cats; cabbage tree also listed for horses
What Is a Cordyline?
Cordyline is a genus in the asparagus family. It holds 24 species, native to Australia, New Zealand and many of the western Pacific islands, and some grow 3 to 6 feet tall while others reach 40 feet. The name comes from the Greek kordyle, meaning club, a reference to the enlarged underground rhizomes.
The strap-like leaves come in green, pink, purple and variegated forms, and the stems turn woody as the plant grows into a tree-like shape. The flowers are very fragrant, but plants in pots rarely bloom.
Is a Cordyline a Dracaena?
No, although the two get mixed up all the time. The ti plant was once called Dracaena terminalis, and the cabbage tree was once Dracaena australis. NC State Extension says the ti plant is often confused with Dracaena fragrans and gives two quick checks:
- Leaf stalks: Cordyline leaves have grooved petioles (leaf stalks). Dracaena leaves have none.
- Roots: Cordyline roots are white. Dracaena roots are orange or yellow.
If a red-edged dragon tree is what you’re after, that’s a true dracaena: see our Dracaena marginata guide.
Hawaiian Ti Plant Care (Cordyline fruticosa)
The ti plant is the cordyline most of us grow indoors. As a houseplant, Missouri Botanical Garden says it more often grows 3 to 6 feet tall. Outdoors, figures run from 3 to 10 feet up to 9 to 15 feet. The leaves grow up to 30 inches long and 6 inches wide. For the full ti plant guide, including pests, diseases and propagation, see How To Grow Cordyline Fruticosa.
Light
Bright light brings out the color. Ti develops its best leaf color in bright light, so give it a spot within 4 to 8 feet of a large south-, east- or west-facing window. Too much direct afternoon sun can scorch the leaves, though, and brightly colored cultivars burn easily in full sun.
Outdoors, UF/IFAS Extension says the ti plant grows in full sun, partial shade or full shade. Moving one from shade into sun? Make the shift gradually over several days to weeks, or the leaves will sunburn.
Water and Brown Leaf Tips
Aim for evenly moist, never soggy. Keep the mix moist but not wet, because excessive drying between waterings causes tipburn and dead leaf margins. Let the plant dry out a bit between waterings and water less from late fall to late winter. Use a pot with drainage holes, and don’t let it sit in a saucer of water.
Brown tips can also come from the water itself. University of Hawaii Extension says ti plants are highly sensitive to fluoride and recommends irrigation water with less than 0.25 ppm. Penn State Extension gives the same limit and says not to use a potting mix with perlite or superphosphate fertilizer. Use rainwater or distilled water if your tap water is fluoridated. Letting tap water stand overnight removes chlorine, not fluoride. Our guide to brown leaf tips walks through every cause.
Temperature and Humidity
Indoors, aim for 65 to 85°F, humidity of 40 to 60% and a spot away from cold drafts. The ti plant does best at 65 to 95°F and does not tolerate temperatures below 50°F, and the leaf tips turn brown if the air is too dry. Plan on a winter minimum of 65°F.
Summering a ti plant outside? Bring it in before nights drop toward 50°F. Waiting for the first frost is too late.
Soil and Feeding
Ti grows best in fertile, moist, well-drained, acidic soil high in organic matter, with a pH of 5.5 to 6.5. For pots, use a well-drained loamy soil or peat-based potting mix.
Fertilizing several times a year helps the plant keep its colors, and slow-release fertilizers work best for potted ti. Follow the product label for amounts.
Growing Ti Plants Outdoors
Hardiness listings vary: USDA zones 9B to 11B, or 10 to 12. The ti plant does best in zone 10; in zone 9b, keep it in containers so it can be moved. In the United States it can be grown outdoors only in far southern Florida, the southwestern United States and Hawaii.
Gardening near the coast? The ti plant’s salt tolerance is poor, and it does not tolerate salt spray on its leaves. Want a tropical look? Croton pairs well with ti plants in a bed or patio planting.
Popular Ti Plant Cultivars
Most of the colorful ti plants sold for gardens and floral work are cultivars of Cordyline fruticosa. Plants grown from seed have given rise to hundreds of cultivars, which are then grown from cuttings to keep their looks. A few of them:
- ‘Baby Doll’: Small-leaved, maroon trimmed with a pink edge.
- ‘Kiwi’: Olive green heavily striped with yellow, with red leaf margins. Other descriptions give bright pink margins and streaks of pale green, chartreuse and dark green.
- ‘Tricolor’: Purple-brown stripes from the center of the leaf toward yellow margins.
- ‘Peter Buck’: A red cultivar that tends to turn greener in heavy shade.
- ‘Hilo Rainbow’ (‘Imperialis’): Strongly recurved leaves with narrow red margins.
- ‘Schubertti’ (‘Kaupo Beauty’): Green with red to brown streaks near the margins; a tall plant.
- Also listed: ‘Auntie Lou’, ‘Bolero’, ‘Hawaiian Bonsai’ and Cordyline Red Sister.
Don’t be surprised if your plant’s color shifts a bit. Growing conditions often change leaf color.
Why Are My Ti Plant’s Leaves Turning Yellow?
A reader asked why the leaves on a four-year-old Hawaiian ti kept yellowing and dropping, even with sun and plant food. Start with the good news: some yellowing of older leaves is normal, and the plant loses its lower leaves as it ages.
When yellowing goes beyond the oldest leaves, look for micronutrient deficiency (usually iron), root rot or root-knot nematodes. Low light, low humidity and hot, dry air can also cause leaf loss. Check that water drains freely, keep the mix evenly moist and raise the humidity. Cut or pull off yellow or brown lower leaves.
How To Propagate Cordylines
Ti plants grow easily from pieces of stem. Cut bare stems into sections 1 inch long or longer, then bury three-fourths of the length upright, or lay them on their side with about 1/4 inch of the stem’s thickness covered. Keep them moist and in partial shade. Rooting takes 2 to 4 weeks, and rooting hormone is not necessary. You can also set these ti logs on a bed of moist gravel until roots appear.
A leafy tip with about 6 inches of stem also roots quickly and makes a well-shaped plant in 4 to 6 months. To keep a cultivar’s colors, use cuttings: seedlings vary widely in size, leaf color and shape.
For cabbage trees and other cordylines, try tip cuttings 4 to 6 inches long with only the top tuft of leaves left, stem sections 5 to 7.5 cm (about 2 to 3 inches) long laid flat with a bud just showing, or rooted suckers cut from the base in spring. Once a cutting has a good root system, pot it up and care for it like a mature plant.
Hardy Cordylines: Cabbage Trees and Their Cousins
Not every cordyline is a tropical ti plant. Several come from New Zealand and handle cooler weather, and breeders have used them to create new colors.
Cordyline australis (Cabbage Tree)
The cabbage tree is one of the best-known native plants of New Zealand, and can reach 30 to 60 feet there. It’s listed for zones 9 to 11; it was brought to the United States in the early 1800s and now grows in parts of California and the southern U.S. It has sword-shaped, gray-green leaves up to 3 feet long, and young plants are often sold as a fountain of grassy leaves with no trunk.
In a container, it slowly forms a cane-like trunk and can reach about 15 feet. It develops a taproot, so give it a large, deep pot. Keep container soil consistently moist in summer and drier indoors in winter, in a bright, sunny spot. Container-grown plants rarely flower.
How hardy is it? The RHS calls Cordyline australis the hardiest species and gives it a UK rating of H3, hardy in coastal and relatively mild areas down to about -5°C (23°F). Even so, it says young plants and colored-leaf cultivars are prone to winter damage, and long spells of cold, damp weather can kill cordylines. Its winter tips:
- Tie the leaves together in a bunch to cut wind damage and keep water out of the growing point.
- In cold spots, wrap the stem in fleece and lay a thick mulch over the roots.
- Move potted plants to a frost-free greenhouse, porch or conservatory (a shed or garage works as shelter during cold snaps), and keep them fairly dry over winter.
Two red-leaved cultivars to know: ‘Red Star’, with narrow, bright bronze-red leaves, and ‘Red Sensation’, with purplish-red leaves. Full sun suits green-leaved cordylines, but light shade is better for colorful ones, since strong sun can fade their color.
Pair a red cabbage tree in a big patio pot with bright perennials such as lavender, Mexican heather, verbena, lantana or canna, or let it stand alone with decorative rock in a minimalist landscape.
Cordyline banksii ‘Electric Pink’
C. banksii ‘Sprilecpink’ is sold as Electric Pink, with upright, dark maroon leaves edged in shocking pink. Its U.S. plant patent (PP19,213, granted September 2008) says it began as a natural mutation of a Cordyline banksii cultivar, found in Zhejiang, China, in 2003. The patent describes a multi-stemmed plant about 4 feet tall and 2.5 feet wide that does not typically flower. The patent says it has been observed to tolerate wind, rain and temperatures from about 41 to 113°F (5 to 45°C).
Festival Grass (Cordyline ‘Jurred’)
Then there’s ‘Jurred’, also called ‘Red Fountain’ and Festival Grass, with vivid burgundy-red leaves on a slow-growing stem 2 to 3 feet tall. Its plant patent (PP14,224) says it was bred in New Zealand from a cross involving C. banksii, C. australis ‘Purple Tower’ and C. pumilio. It forms a small clump of long, strappy burgundy leaves (which I am a fan of), with fragrant, pale lilac flowers.
Cordyline pumilio (Dwarf Cabbage Tree)
The New Zealand Plant Conservation Network describes the dwarf cabbage tree, also called tī koraha or tī rauriki, as a small tuft of long, very narrow leaves, usually with no visible trunk, up to about 3 feet tall. It is found only in New Zealand’s North Island. It grows easily from fresh seed and stem cuttings, likes full sun and well-drained soil, and suits a raised bed or a pot on the deck.
Cordyline Pests and Problems
Cordylines don’t have many pest problems. Watch for mealybugs, plant scale and spider mites on leaf undersides, especially on indoor plants. Check where the leaves meet the stems for mealybugs.
Dab mealybugs with an alcohol-soaked cotton swab or wash the plant with soapy water, use a forceful spray of water for spider mites, and use insecticidal soap for aphids, the safest and most effective control. Before using alcohol, UC IPM says to use a solution of 70% or less isopropyl alcohol and to test it on a small part of the plant 1 to 2 days ahead to make sure it doesn’t burn the leaves. Whatever you use, follow the label. Our roundup of natural pest control options has more ideas.
For hardy cordylines, winter cold and damp cause most trouble: leaf spots from cold wind, hail or winter wet, and yellowing or browning from cold, wet weather or summer drought. Cold, wet soil can also rot the rhizomes.
Are Cordylines Toxic to Pets?
Yes, treat them as toxic. The ASPCA lists the ti plant as toxic to dogs and cats, with saponins as the toxic principle and signs such as vomiting (occasionally with blood), depression, loss of appetite, drooling and dilated pupils in cats. Cordyline australis is also listed as a problem for dogs, cats and horses. Keep plants out of reach, and call your veterinarian or the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center if a pet chews one.
Ti Plants in Hawaiian Culture
The ti plant is more than a pretty face. Early Polynesians planted masses of ti around homes to ward off evil and bring good fortune, and the leaves are still used for hula skirts and wrapping food. Hawaiians also steamed the ti root in underground ovens to eat as a sweet. That’s history, not a snack suggestion: the plant is toxic to pets. It is also believed to bring good luck.
Jim Talley’s Costa Rican “Black” Cordyline
Over the years I’ve been lucky to know some extraordinary plant people: growers, collectors and landscapers. One was Jim Talley, a landscape designer with a gift for seeing how a plant or a rock would fit naturally into a landscape.
Back in the early 1970s, Jim told me the story of Cordyline ‘Black Magic’, the plant we called Costa Rican “Black”. Jim’s plants grew tall with long burgundy-black leaves.
Jim often traveled to Costa Rica looking for new plants. On a back road there, he came upon a hedge of Costa Rican “Black” about 150 feet long. He had no time to take cuttings, so he planned to collect some when he came back about six weeks later.
When he returned, the whole hedge was gone, bulldozed to widen the road. Jim searched and found one small piece of cane, brought it home and rooted it.
That piece of cane became Jim’s signature plant, and he worked it into his landscape jobs. Jim has since passed away, but his signature plant lives on.
Which cordyline is in your garden, a tropical ti or a hardy cabbage tree? Tell us in the comments.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are cordylines perennials?
Yes. Cordylines are long-lived evergreen shrubs and palm-like trees, not annuals. The genus is classed as a woody perennial. In cold climates they are often grown in pots, or used in summer displays and brought indoors before winter.
Are cordylines frost hardy?
Only some, and only a little. Cordyline australis is the hardiest species, rated hardy in coastal and mild UK areas to about -5°C (23°F), but young plants and colored-leaf cultivars are prone to winter damage. The Hawaiian ti plant is tender: it does not tolerate temperatures below 50°F. Move potted cabbage trees to a frost-free spot for winter, and keep ti plants above 50°F.
Are cordylines drought tolerant?
Hardy cordylines are, once established. Established cordylines in the ground are drought tolerant and shouldn’t need watering, though potted ones need regular watering in the growing season. The ti plant is less forgiving: its drought tolerance is rated moderate, and it tolerates only brief dry spells.
Is a cordyline the same as a dracaena?
No. They are separate genera that are easy to confuse, and some cordylines once carried Dracaena names. Cordyline leaves have grooved leaf stalks and white roots, while dracaena leaves have no leaf stalks and dracaena roots are orange or yellow. Our Cordyline fruticosa guide covers the ti plant in depth.
Are cordylines poisonous to dogs and cats?
Treat them as toxic. The ti plant is toxic to dogs and cats because of saponins, with signs such as vomiting, drooling, depression and loss of appetite. The cabbage tree, Cordyline australis, is also listed as a problem for dogs, cats and horses. Keep cordylines out of reach of pets and call your veterinarian if one chews a leaf.