Few years ago I cut our tall Dracaena (corn plant) into three parts and replanted them in potting soil. They grew quite well. Later on, I gave one (the top cutting) to a friend. Yesterday she gave me back the plant because it was not growing very well. The leaves were wilted and the cane looked crinkle.
Unhappy Dracaena, leaves are wilted.
Today, after I thoroughly watered the unhappy plant, I took it out of the pot to check the root system. I found that the roots were very dry and after being watered well, the soil mix was still dry. It seemed to me that the soil mix repelled water. Why this happened? Perhaps my friend left it dry quite a while. Very dry potting mix can become water repellent, in which the water cannot penetrate all the soil and just runs out of the pot holes.
I decided to cut the plant into two parts. The top one with wilted leaves will be rooted by soaking it in water, while the bottom part with roots will be replanted in fresh potting soil. It is the beginning of autumn here in Melbourne, hopefully there will enough warm days before winter arrives in June.
Bottom cutting:
Though they are dry, the roots have grown quite well since I replanted it from top cutting few years ago. I soaked the dry roots in water to re-hydrate and then it was planted in a pot by using fresh potting mix that has been mixed with a bit of cactus mix.
Top Cutting:
I trimmed the droopy leaves shorter to help this top cutting grow new roots quicker by reducing the energy on the leaves. This time I am trying to root this cutting in water. It is just an experiment to see if the method really work.
Update 10 October 2020:
Today 2 years later, I still haven’t done anything to the cutting in water. It is still sitting on my kitchen window sill. It is alive and has grown roots and new leaves, should have transplanted it normally months ago. It lives with just tap water, I don’t even add any fertiliser at all.
On second thought, I will let it grow in water and will add a tiny bit of soluble fertilizer to make it grow fatter 😉
Kiyanti2008's Weblog 
Mar 08, 2018 @ 17:00:21
Hi Lois, thank you so much for sending me an email about your new posting! And I will also tell you what else I have come across rooting in water and perhaps you may want to incorporate it too in your process of placing the one cutting in water now.
I have really been pondering about the different methods (as I have first tried the air layering method and has not rooted yet, and I feel that because it was Autumn last year here in Japan when I did it, perhaps that is one reason it has not rooted yet. However at this point I can not really wait much longer to see if the air layering method will root after Spring settles in as the plant is stressed touching the ceiling).
So one concern I heard from a local landscape gardener about the water method is the risk of rod. However, yesterday I have come across a youtube post that speaks of changing the water daily if possible, or as often as one can, at least once a week. This apparently will prevent rot.
The local landscape gardener was suggesting to me that I needed to cut it into 6 parts, about 10 cm in length, something which terrified me to do that. My sense after trying to understand the different methods, having a certain length with 2-4 leaves on the cutting to be maintained during the rooting process, directly in water may provide an easier route for the cutting to receive the nutrients it needs.
I am still contemplating on it, but as the concern about rot has been alleviated, I am tending to trying the water method, and just as Spring is around the corner here in Japan I hope it will give it a good energy, both for rooting and for new shoots.
What seems to be important for re-potting the cutting after rooting in water is to wait until it has a good amount of long roots before planting it in soil.
Mar 08, 2018 @ 21:33:19
Thanks for reminding me to change the water as often as possible. Anyway it is kind of trial and error. I rooted lemon grass and pothos in water before and it worked. I even grow phalaenopsis orchid in water now (water culture), and it seems that it also works.
As about doing your dracaena, don’t worry too much as it is a tough plant and yours is a healthy one. The one that I’ve just done is a bit of worry as it was a very stress plant to begin with. But I have nothing to lose, I still have the other two that are very healthy.
Mar 08, 2018 @ 21:10:50
wah.. baru tau cara ini mbak..
direndam dalam air berapa lama?
semoga berhasil pakai cara rendaman ini mbak
Mar 08, 2018 @ 21:40:31
Kalau tanamannya sehat, saya yakin akan berhasil. Namun yang ini daunnya sudah layu dan batang juga terasa alot/tidak segar waktu saya potong. Kelihatannya tanaman ini dibiarkan terlalu lama kering dan akhirnya media tanamnya jadi tak bisa menyerap air.
Saya sudah coba menumbuhkan batang serai dan potongan sirih belanda dengan direndam air dan berhasil. Belum tahu berapa lama akar akan tumbuh dengan potongan dahan dracaena yg sudah agak layu. Kalau potongan dahan sirih belanda cepat sekali tidak sampai seminggu, sedangkan serai seingat saya dua atau tiga minggu.
Apr 03, 2018 @ 22:29:59
Ya mbak, tanah yg dibiarkan terlalu kering lewat wilting point bertindak selaku penolak air dan air lolos saja. Semoga potongan dracaena yg dievakuasi bisa selamat. Salam
Apr 05, 2018 @ 10:38:54
Potongan yang direndam air sudah mulai kelihatan tumbuh akarnya disekeliling ruas diatas air, tapi belum tumbuh panjang. Potongan dengan akar malah belum kelihatan tumbuh tunas daun. Nanti kalau cuaca semakin dingin akan dipindahkan kedalam rumah dekat jendela.
Oct 10, 2020 @ 13:30:12
Just wondering what the outcome was for the top cutting rooting in water? I have 3 in one pot but noticed one is not doing well, so was considering doing the same. If it worked, about how long did it take for new roots to grow?
Thank you!
Oct 10, 2020 @ 15:02:55
Thanks Joanne. You can see the update that I just posted few minutes ago to see how it looks like now. It has been 2 years and it’s still sitting in water. I think the roots started to grow few weeks later. If the cutting is still fresh I think it will work, but if it’s not healthy anymore I doubt it. By the way, I just read some of my answers to the comments above, and I wrote that it has started to grow roots on April, so it was about a month later.