If you still have a piece of the stalk left, you could try rooting that. It doesn't have to have leaves on it. You can find instructions at the following link. If you still prefer to try root cuttings, you'll need to cut pieces of the root that are 3 to 6 inches long. You can keep track of which end was closest to the plant by cutting that end off straight, and cutting the other end at a slant. Some people prefer to lay root cuttings horizontally about 1/2 inch under the soil. And some people prefer to plant them upright. If you plant them upright, you need to be sure to plant them with the slanted end down and the straight end at the surface of the soil. It's best to use Pro-Mix or some other sterile potting mix instead of actual soil for cuttings. And you'll probably want to cover the container loosely with a plastic bag to keep that mix damp but not soggy. Hope this helps! Here is a link that might be useful: Propagating Corn Plant

Jess. your poor Dracaena! It's been through a lot. Tap water is fine. You don't need Spring or any other bottled water. Also, it's not sunburn. One thing you should have been doing the last 5-years is rotating your Dracaena 1/4 turn once a week. I think your Corn Plant has/d a 'Dehydration' problem. How long did it go without being watered? You didn't mention time spent away from home. You also stated the pot doesn't have drainage. Do you know the container size? Was it watered before you left? Let's say soil dried completely and was w/o water for a good amount of time. Then you returned and gave it heavy drink..Possibly too much?? Even though there are rocks on the bottom of pot, if you added too much water, the roots could have been sitting in water all this time. Do you check soil between waterings? Not only the top, but halfway or further down? Your container looks large, 'by the picture.' If the top soil dries, it doesnt' mean the bottom soil is dry too. It needs to be checked..A thin stake is sufficient. Insert the stake as deep as possible. If the stake comes out wet, the bottom soil is still wet. And visa versa. Lifting a pot is another way to check. Lift after watering. Wait a week, two, etc, and relift. If the pot is light, most likely the soil is either drying out or dry. Only you can determine its weight and use judgement whether or not it needs a drink. Why did you start watering twice a month instead of once? It's possible its roots aren't absorbing water, 'if it's beens sitting in muddy soil.' Short periods of drought won't cause much harm, but heavy periods can cause permanent damage, preventing the plant from breathing. This happens frequently. Soil dries too much, then the plant ends up over-watered. Especially if the pot is w/o drainage. If your plant was in a pot with drainage, the first thing that should have been done is, soaking in a bucket of water, until top of soil is moist. Soaking can take anywhere from 15-30 minutes. Possibly more depending on pot size and amount of soil. What type of soil was used when you last repotted? Have you repotted in the last 5-years? Do you fertilize? It's going to require some work, but you love your plant so it's well worth it. Unpot the plant. Toss out old soil. Add fresh, semi-well-draining soil. Although your pot is very pretty, instead of potting directly in the container, pot in a plastic pot w/drainage. Pot size should be determined by the root-ball. 1-3 sizes larger is fine. After your plant is potted, it can be placed in your pretty blue pot. BUT, it's important you place something inside the pot so when you water, roots don't sit in water. I use styrofoam sheets. Break a piece or two to fit inside ccontainer, 'depending on thickness,' in the blue pot, then set the plastic pot on top of the styrofoam. Water well...enough all parts of the rootball are moistened. Remove dead leaves, or trim brown edges of leaves. Is the air in your house dry? If so, start misting. Or, if your plant isn't too heavy, give it a shower. Rain water is the best medicine, but if it's cold or not raining, that's out. lol. Instead, spray each leaf. After your Dracanea settles in, renews growth, give it a half-dossage of an All Purpose Fertilizer. In the future, rotate, once a week, so the entire plant gets balanced light. an unobstructed, south window is usually harsh for Dracaneas, in summer, when sun is blazing, but since your Corn Plant has been in that window the last 5 yrs, it probably adapted. Sunburn would be obvious. I wish you luck..It's going to take some work, but you love your plant, so get to it. BTW, check its roots. Corn Plants are pretty forgiving. Toni

My very snap-judgment guess would be overwatering, leading to rot in the lowest cane. The outside-separating-from-the-center thing is a pretty telltale sign of rot. The only rescuing that could be done depends on whether there's any part of the cane which is still solid all the way through: if there is, you might be able to cut it away from the rotted part and root it. It's a bit of a long shot, but on the other hand, if there's any time of year where it might work, this is that time. I wrote this post for my blog about general care for corn plants. It won't necessarily be of use to you in this situation, but it might help prevent a recurrence.

Hello! First, the name. This is not the corn plant (Dracaena massangeana, aka Mass cane), what you have is Dracaena deremensis 'Janet Craig', JC cane or Janet Craig for short. This looks like flouride damage as a result of being too dry (you can tell simply looking at the leaves, how they are all wilted looking that its been going way too dry!) As the soil dries down, salts in the soil-water become more concentrated, and the plant takes up that concentrated salt-water. Once in the plant, the salts create this yellowing that you see. The yellow itself will never go away but theres a few things that will help: 1. That looks like its in strong light: WATER!!!! JC canes can be relatively heavy drinkers in high light. Do NOT let them dry down too much. Let it get down to the consistency of a wrung out sponge, then give it a solid half gallon...this should last about a week or so in that light. 2. Buy horitcultural lime from lowes/home depot/local gardens center and apply it to the soil, making sure to follow the label directions. Raising the pH of the soil with lime will help lock out the flouride so the plant won't take it up. 3. Since you have this at home, you have the luxury of leaching. Once a month or so, take it to the bathroom or outside and run lots of pure water through the pot. This will wash out any salts that have accumulated in the soil, preventing this damage. 4. When was the last time you repotted your plant? Fresh soil will definitely benefit the plant if it hasn't been repotted in a long time. Nows a good time of year to do it. 5. Consider cutting down the stalks to within a few inches of the soil line and letting it branch out. The yellow will not go away, pruning them down will give you new, lush, green growth and reinvigorate the plant. A 2nd chance, if you will. 6. Barring that, remove all the old dried reminants of cut leaves. Pests can hide in there and breed, unbeknownst to you! 7. In the meantime, consider cutting off as much of the yellow as you can. If its concentrated at the end of the leaf, you can simply cut the leaf below the yellow, making sure to cut it into the shape of a leaf instead of simply cutting right across. It will look more natural this way. Good luck with your plant! I have a lot of suggestions here, but really this is a common problem that can be prevented and corrected with just a few simple steps! Most important are don't let it dry down, add lime, and leach the pot, in that order. Just doing these will improve the whole issue 100%!