Hi Trog. Welcome. What do you mean, 'without proper trunks and 'both are only about 8 leaves wide but 3-4' tall?'
Do you know which Dracaena species you have? A picture would help not only for "ID" purposes but a description of the base being dark. Toni

Thanks Hopeful, I don't know for sure what kind of dracaena this is (grocery store find). I also mixed up the measurements in my first post.

Here's some pics...as you can see one stalk is brown and has some damaged growth while the other looks ok.

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Do the plants not have any stalks because they're babies or did you bury them when you repotted?

they're babies...

Trog, your Dracaena is actually Cordyline. It's sold in garden centers as annuals for summer gardens, (cold climates) but the good news is, Cordylines are tender perrenials and can live on for years, if cared for properly.
The, well, not really bad news is, although Cordylines are related to Dracaenas, somehow affiliated, they are more difficult keeping indoors then say, (Corn Plant) D. fragens or (Dragon Tree,) D. marginata.
Fertilize in summer..This type of Cordyline is slow-growing, but will grow in summer, slow down or halt in winter. Stop fertilizing after September, restart some time in Apr or when you see new growth. Good luck, Toni

They are sun lovers, though will do fine in very bright light. They will rot if overwatered. Drainage holes are mandatory.

They should be summered outdoors. Although tap water will suffice, they dote on rain. But once again, drainage is important.
I've seen huge versions of Cordyline, (one that comes to mind had purple leaves,) $600.00!
When mature, they are beautiful, thick-stiff leaves. Height and width depends on the species. Some grow 18" while others reach 6-8' tall.

Wow, thanks for the correction hopeful. Every other plant i come across is labeled draceana in the shops. I tried IDing it from books but I wasn't even sure.

Thanks for all the info...

I've often wondered why "Dracaena spikes" are usually sold as garden annuals when they can live for years as houseplants. They can also grow into huge trees when grown in frost-free areas: While running a Google Image search for dracaena spikes I found an old posting in the Gardening in Canada Forum. It's of a massive Cordyline that was found growing in southwestern British Columbia.

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Cool, eh???????{{gwi:90761}}

As for why one of your plants has a darker base, my guess would be that maybe it's a different variety. If they were sold in individual pots, that is a possibility.

Here is a link that might be useful: Colossal Cordyline

Tim, yes, it's quite Cool..Wow. If you hadn't said the tree is a Cordy, I'd have assumed it was D. draco, but I believe Dracos would freeze in a zone less than 8 or 9?? No?
Tim, many plants are sold as annuals and tender perrenials. The same plants we buy as indoor plants. Asparagus ferns, Hedera, Datura, Coleus and many more. One garden center sells Jasmines, Abutilion, etc..People buy these plants, set in their garden, toss in autumn. To think, paying 4.50+ for an Asparagus fern at an indoor nursery opposed to .50 at a garden center, says it all..Mucho profit. lol.

Trog, Tim made a good point. Since there are so many Cordy varieties, it's 'possible' the type you have has a dark trunk..Is it the entire trunk that turned gray or just the base..? Toni

It's a natural senescence (aging) thing. Plants have 2 ages. The first is like ours, chronological, and measured in days/months/years. The second is termed ontogenetical, and is closer to the measure of how many times cells have divided in a plant organ. Plants have parts that are different ontogenetic ages.

The larger plant has obviously had more cell divisions and is ontogenetically older than its counterpart, so it's not unusual that it looks different. Young scheffleras have shiny green, smooth bark, but when they get old, the bark turns gray, scaly, and fissured like most trees. The same thing is happening with the older plant. The tissue the older leaves are made of goes through physiological changes as the tree ages ontogenetically, and that is what you're observing. The smaller plant will soon be showing the same changes as the larger when it reaches the ontogenetic age that the larger plant is now.

Al