Dieffenbachia

About Dieffenbachia

Dieffenbachia is a Central and South American genus of broad-leaved aroids long grown as houseplants for cream-and-green mottled foliage, named for German botanist Joseph Dieffenbach. Most named cultivars (Camille, Tropic Snow, Reflector) are commercial hybrids bred for pattern density, while D. seguine and its cultivars represent the genus's wild species side.

Care notes

• All Dieffenbachia sap contains calcium oxalate crystals that irritate skin and mouth tissue; handle cuttings and pruning with care, and keep away from pets and children who might chew a leaf.
• Heavily cream/white cultivars (Tropic Snow, Tropic Marianne) have less chlorophyll-bearing tissue than greener forms and generally grow slower, needing bright, indirect light to avoid weak, leggy growth.
• Older Dieffenbachia naturally lose lower leaves as the cane grows taller, a bare lower stem is normal growth habit, not decline, and can be cut back and re-rooted to restart a fuller plant.