# Please identify this plant? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 5, 2010, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-identify-this-plant/556108 "2010-10-05T12:56:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Casey1505](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dc4da7/32.png) [@Casey1505](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Casey1505)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2010, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-identify-this-plant/556108/1 "2010-10-05T12:56:10Z")
I inherited an [office plant](http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=6710156&l=f4dd188bbe&id=563379975), and no one seems to know what it is. We don’t believe it’s a spider plant, and other guesses ruled out include mother-in-law plant, snake plant, and cactus. It’s in a pot with a majesty palm, but it doesn’t look anything like it, so we ruled that out as well. Any ideas would help, thank you! ---
**Author:** ![Anaglyph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Anaglyph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaglyph)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2010, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-identify-this-plant/556108/2 "2010-10-05T13:20:29Z")
a young screw pine ([pandanus utilis](http://www.google.ch/imgres?imgurl=http://www.ffw-drebkau.de/pandanus1.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.terraon.de/terrarien-phelsumen/38786-hallo-hab-fragen-zu-ein-paar-exoten-terrarienbepflanzung.html&usg=__1nDzg4sY8voxnpEX3SGWRuvDtWk=&h=768&w=1024&sz=609&hl=de&start=107&zoom=1&tbnid=1XU8qVAMg5o7SM:&tbnh=149&tbnw=199&prev=/images%3Fq%3DPandanus%2Butilis%26hl%3Dde%26sa%3DG%26biw%3D1363%26bih%3D936%26gbv%3D2%26tbs%3Disch:11%2C2051&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=138&vpy=653&dur=3044&hovh=194&hovw=259&tx=91&ty=130&ei=1yWrTLKhHsiWOtPIqfgG&oei=WyWrTJPnKYmWOridoOsG&esq=32&page=4&ndsp=38&ved=1t:429,r:7,s:107&biw=1363&bih=936))? ---
**Author:** ![Ionizer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/5daacb/32.png) [@Ionizer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ionizer)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2010, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-identify-this-plant/556108/3 "2010-10-05T14:30:55Z")
Looks a lot like a dracaena to me, but not quite enough shown in pic for certainty (for me anyways). Google [dracaena](http://www.google.com/images?hl=en&biw=918&bih=543&tbs=isch%3A1&sa=1&q=dracaena&aq=f&aqi=g10&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai=) varieties and see if those are what you got there… ---
**Author:** ![Casey1505](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dc4da7/32.png) [@Casey1505](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Casey1505)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2010, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-identify-this-plant/556108/4 "2010-10-05T15:08:00Z")
Two more pictures of a potted version… [One](http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=6717197&l=25d318bfd0&id=563379975) [Two](http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=6717199&l=a7c4126080&id=563379975) ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2010, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-identify-this-plant/556108/5 "2010-10-05T15:29:54Z")
I’d love to try to identify it, but I can’t access Facebook at work. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![capybara](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/capybara/32/202_2.png) [@capybara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/capybara)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2010, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-identify-this-plant/556108/6 "2010-10-05T18:32:44Z")
Reminds me of pandanus, too, but too early to tell, for me at least. Some sort of dracana’s more likely. ---
**Author:** ![Tethered\_Kite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a5b964/32.png) [@Tethered\_Kite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tethered_Kite)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2010, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-identify-this-plant/556108/7 "2010-10-05T18:39:05Z")
Could it be \*chlorophytum comosum,\*an airplane plant? If so, it will make babies on long curving stems. ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2010, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-identify-this-plant/556108/8 "2010-10-05T21:39:36Z")
Sure looks like a pandanus to me. Especially with the teeth on the edges of the leaves. I don’t believe there’s a dracaena with that feature. ---
**Author:** ![Casey1505](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dc4da7/32.png) [@Casey1505](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Casey1505)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2010, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-identify-this-plant/556108/9 "2010-10-05T21:58:42Z")
I think pandanus is the winner here. It looks an awful lot like [this photo](http://tenpsnt.tripod.com/photo/pandanus009.JPG). Thanks folks! ---
**Author:** ![Ionizer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/5daacb/32.png) [@Ionizer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ionizer)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2010, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-identify-this-plant/556108/10 "2010-10-06T19:59:44Z")
I concur with it being pandanus as well. Seeing those last two pics (but not the last one linked just above, fwiw) and noticing all the serrations along leaves, then seeing these pics [at Daves’ Garden site](http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/showimage/97089/) made the difference for me.