Plants of South Eastern New South Wales
Dracaena trifasciata
Common name
Mother-In-Law's Tongue
Family
Where found
Forest, woodland, roadsides, abandoned gardens, disturbed sites, coastal environs, and near streams. Coastal north from the Sydney area.
Notes
Introduced perennial herb, strongly stoloniferous, rhizome yellow-red or orange, somewhat fleshy, the leaves in upright clusters of 2-6 leaves along the rhizome. Leaf tips sharp. Fleshy leaves and fruit. Leaves basal, 30–175 cm long, 25–90 mm wide, dark green with many conspicuous light or greyish green irregular transverse stripes; often with light green, yellowish or reddish margins. Flowers scented, white, yellowish-white or greenish-white, tubular, the tube 6-12 mm long, with 6 narrow lobes each 15-20 mm long, usually curved backwards when the flowers are fully open. Flowers in erect elongated clusters 40–75 cm long, usually arranged in groups of 1-3 along the flowering stems. Flowering mostly spring-summer. Fruit orange, more or less round, 7–9 mm in diameter.
Family Dracaenaceae in PlantNET.
PlantNET description: https://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/cgi-bin/NSWfl.pl?page=nswfl&lvl=sp&name=Dracaena~trifasciata (accessed 21 April 2021)
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