Dracaena reflexa, commonly called song of India or song of Jamaica, is a flowering plant in the family Asparagaceae and genus Dracaena, first described by Jean Baptiste Lamarck in 1786. It has been reclassified several times over its taxonomic history, having been placed in related genera including Cordyline and Pleomele, and Plants of the World Online recognized 13 varieties of the species as of January 2026. The plant is native to Mozambique, Madagascar, Mauritius and nearby islands of the Indian Ocean. It is a slow growing, upright tree tending to an oval shape, typically reaching 4 to 5 meters and occasionally 6 meters in the wild, though it stays much smaller in cultivation indoors, with lanceolate leaves 5 to 20 centimeters long and 1.5 to 5 centimeters broad, spirally arranged in tight whorls with parallel venation and dark green coloring. Small, fragrant, clustered white flowers appear in mid-winter, though neither the flowers nor the fruit are particularly showy. The IUCN lists the species as Least Concern. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/
Facts
Classification
DietPhotosynthetic Autotroph 1 System (Realm) Relationship to PeopleUsed in Traditional Medicine 1 Living or Extinct Scientific Name Conservation Status Comparison
CITES Appendix Connections
Child Taxon Of
Source GBIF Backbone Taxonomy: Dracaena reflexa
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Found In
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Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.
Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.
Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.
Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.
Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.
Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.
Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.
Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.
Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.
Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.
Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.
Sources
1. Dracaena reflexa (Wikipedia)
Infobox: status
LC
Introduction
Dracaena reflexa (commonly called song of India or song of Jamaica) is a tree native to Mozambique, Madagascar, Mauritius, and other nearby islands of the Indian Ocean. It is widely grown as an ornamental plant and houseplant, valued for its richly coloured, evergreen leaves, and thick, irregular stems.
Cultivation and uses
The cultivar Dracaena reflexa 'Variegata' has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit. (confirmed 2017) Traditional medicine practitioners of Madagascar have long believed Dracaena reflexa to cure malarial symptoms, poisoning, dysentery, diarrhea, dysmenorrhea, and to be useful as an antipyretic and hemostatic agent.
Lead, sentence naming the group it belongs to
Dracaena reflexa (commonly called song of India or song of Jamaica) is a tree native to Mozambique, Madagascar, Mauritius, and other nearby islands of the Indian Ocean.
View the Source2. Dracaena reflexa (Wikidata)
WikidataStatements section, conservation status (P141)Quote, Statements section, conservation status (P141)
Wikidata Q135016: least concern (P141).
View the Source 3. UNEP-WCMC Species+ database (CITES Secretariat): Species+: Asparagales
UNEP-WCMC Species+ database (CITES Secretariat)Species+ taxon_concepts, id 12439Quote, Species+ taxon_concepts, id 12439
"cites_listing":"II/NC","eu_listing":"B/NC","higher_taxa":{"kingdom":"Plantae","phylum":null,"class":null,"order":"Asparagales","family":null},"synonyms":[],"common_names":[],"cites_listings":[]
View the Source 4. Wikipedia: Dracaena reflexa
Wikipedia
UNEP-WCMC Species+ database (CITES Secretariat): Species+: Asparagaceae
UNEP-WCMC Species+ database (CITES Secretariat)Species+ taxon_concepts, id 67989Quote, Species+ taxon_concepts, id 67989
"cites_listing":"II","eu_listing":"B","higher_taxa":{"kingdom":"Plantae","phylum":null,"class":null,"order":"Asparagales","family":"Asparagaceae"},"synonyms":[],"common_names":[{"name":"天门冬科","language":"ZH"}],"cites_listings":[]
View the Source Plant (Wikipedia)
Lead, whole group is photosyntheticQuote, Lead, whole group is photosynthetic
They are predominantly photosynthetic or came from photosynthetic ancestors, meaning that they obtain their energy from sunlight by using the green pigment chlorophyll in their chloroplasts to produce sugars from carbon dioxide and water.
View the Source GBIF Backbone Taxonomy: Dracaena reflexa
GBIF Backbone TaxonomyChild Taxon Of: Asparagaceae, Taxon recordQuote, Child Taxon Of: Asparagaceae, Taxon record
"family": "Asparagaceae"
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