I'll just give you some of my opinions. First, I think it needs to be in a faster draining soil (not regular potting mix). If you've had it in the same soil for 5 years, it's time to change it. I would get regular potting soil and add perlite (2 parts potting soil to 1 part perlite). I don't think the heat vent/open window is good, but not too sure of the effects of that, so I'll leave that to someone else. If you can move it a little bit away so that it can still get some light, that might help. It needs MUCH more humidity. The pebble tray should always have water in it (but never so FULL so that it touches the bottom of the pot...you don't want the pot sitting in water). Misting 2-4X a month does absolutely nothing. MAYBE if you misted daily, 2-4X a day. But with that heater on, the water will dry off immediately. Also, is there a drainage hole in the pot? There MUST be one...if not, get a pot with a drainage hole. And make sure it isn't too rootbound. Are roots sticking out of the drainage hole? If you decide to repot, make sure you have about an inch between the root ball and the pot, so you might have to go up in size (but not too big). I live in cold NY and keep my dracaena marginata out of any direct light. I water it when it is completely dry. But twice a month seems like it might not be enough. You should probably be watering it when the soil is dry, and not so much on a schedule. If it turns out to be 2x a month, then ok...but make sure you don't let it stay dry for too long. And last, do not fertilize until late Spring. Hope that helps, and good luck with your plants :-) Gabi

Hello fellow house plant freaks Sorry to hear about your Dracaena declining. My Dracaena thrives on ignorance. What was once one of my favourite house plants is now a plant that tends to be pushed out of the way every now and then. it sits underneath a fluorescent light all day and gets watered when it is dry. It has spent most of its life sitting on the floor being pushed out of the way when i needed the room and is mostly an annoyance rather than a prized specimen for me. Despite what seems like a lack of care for it, it still continues to push out new growth from the top. when the leaves crack, i give it a haircut with scissors. i can't remeber the last time i fetilized it (i dont think i have yet months after buying it at Wal-Mart in a not so good condition for 3 bucks) Sometimes i think the best thing you can do for a plant that is declining is to just ignore it and let it do it's thing. Here is a picture of it on my messy desk. It shares it's home with junk laying on my desk and some chemical containers laying around. - Pete, 19

This is just a guess, but could it be slugs? I don't know if they like eating Dracaenas, but they to come out at night and prefer eating newer, younger leaves that are more tender than older leaves. Do you grow it indoors or outdoors? Some pics would help us to properly diagnose what could possibly be doing this. I grow my Dracaenas outside during the warm months, but I keep them all on a table, up off of the ground and away from these annoying pests.

Yes, it's D. marginata, an interesting one with a lot of character in its' funky trunks. I think they look completely awesome. The funky bends and twists develop over time from leaning toward light, and from being top-heavy. Everything looks/sounds good. A slightly more bright spot than where it was at its' previous home should work well. Love your flamingo too! Once the roots have taken hold in the new pot, hopefully you'll be able to remove the ties. The combo of a little more light and putting a fan blowing on it gently for an hour or more per day could help the trunks to get a little stronger.