Growing Dragon Fruit from cuttings

Planting

Grow Dragon Fruit from a cutting is simple and easy. Each cutting is labeled near the bottom and this is the end that is placed into the soil. Cuttings should be planted about one inch below the soil level. This will give the cutting time to establish a root system and adapt to your soil conditions. Once you get new growth on your cutting, check to see if it has established roots. If so, it can be transplanted to a bigger pot or permanent location. You can grow your cuttings in a variety of ways. For small container locations, I would recommend hanging baskets or a 5-gallon container with a tomato cage as support. For larger plants, I recommend a 25-gallon container. These are movable but they a heavy and could grow unstable if not properly pruned. Click here to see our YouTube video on how we build our Dragon Fruit container.

Soil

For soil, I recommend using a good composting manured. We also topdress every spring and do not use any fertilizer. Dragon Fruit loves compost, but be careful some homemade or store-bought compost can burn the plant. For this reason, I would cut the compost with the organic matter until you find the correct mix. Adding perlite to the mix will help with drainage.

Sun

Dragon Fruit needs full sun when growing. This is also critical for fruiting, however, you will need to give your starter cutting a break with some shade in the early months of planting. Once mature, when the plant turns a light lime green to almost yellow, it is perfect. If it gets too yellow, it will sunburn. If this happens, simply move the plant or use a shade cloth during these months.

Water

This is dependent on the area you live in. We have lots of hot, humid, and rainy weather. For this reason, we do not water January – April. The rest of the year, we only water during dry periods which maybe only be once or twice a year.

Pruning

Pruning is required to maintain the shape and size of the plant. This enables access to fruits which aides in harvesting. Depending on your growing system, different pruning techniques are required.