Dracaena goldieana, or queen of Dracaenas, is a tropical shrub in the genus Dracaena, native to Central Africa and Nigeria. It is widely cultivated as an ornamental plant, valued for its richly variegated foliage.
Description
Dracaena goldieana is a small, rhizomatous understory shrub or subshrub growing to 30–60 cm high with a slender stem, up to 1 cm in diameter. The ovate leaves, which measure 18–30 cm long and up to 6.5 cm wide, terminate in a filiform (threadlike) mucro. The leaves are dark green, retained along the entire stem, and are variegated with transverse bands of light grey.
The flowers of D. goldieana are sessile, white in colour, and form dense clusters 25-30 mm long.
Distribution
Dracaena goldieana is native to Nigeria and western Central Africa, including Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and Zaire. It has also been introduced to Trinidad and Tobago.