How to Grow Dragonfruit at Home: A Simple Guide From a Bengaluru Gardener

  16 June 2025

Known as a great source of Vitamin C and B, dragon fruit requires very little water and grows best in places with hot temperatures. The best part is that you can grow it right at home!

Bengaluru-based home gardener Indira Ashok Shah has two dragon fruit trees on her terrace. She shares 10 easy tips to grow the fruit in pots.

1. Prepare the drum or pot you intend to use to sow the seeds or plant the sapling. It is important to ensure that the pots have 2 or 3 drain holes.

2. The ideal size of the pot should be 15-24 inches in diameter and 10-12 inches in depth. You can use plastic, clay or even terracotta pots for the dragon fruit.

3. The potting mix should consist of red soil, cocopeat, compost and sand.

4. If you are using a cutting of the fruit, it needs to be kept aside for four days in a shaded area before you can plant it. The cutting needs to be dry before it is transferred to a pot.

5. Once the cutting is dry, it can be planted. Make sure you water the soil once you have added the cutting.

6. This should be followed by placing the pot in an area that has at least eight hours of sunlight. Dragon fruit needs ample sun to be able to grow well.

7. This plant does not require a lot of water. When the soil starts to feel dry, water the plant. Add compost once every three months.

8. Once the plant starts to grow, it will need support, for which you can add in a stick and tie the plant to it.

9. While some dragon fruits are self-pollinating, others rely on moths and bats to carry out night-time pollination.

10. To carry out hand-pollination of dragon fruit, look for the male flower (the one that has opened or bloomed the most). Pluck the pollen from the male flower and gently sprinkle over the female (smaller or lesser bloomed) flowers.