CFF - Giant Elephant Ear Plant Care Aroid Growing Tips & How to... Colocasia, Xanthosoma, Taro, Dasheen, Malanga, Alocasia, Aroids, Banana Plants, Many other Rare & Exotic Tropical RainForest Plants for sale

What is an Aroid? - any plant of the family Araceae; have small flowers massed on a spadix surrounded by a large spathe. All aroids are the family Araceae. Another name for an aroid Arum (as in Titan Arum).

All Elephant Ear Plants are in the Araceae family (Arum or Aroid family) and grow from a bulbous, tuberous, rhizomatic corm (also called a cormel) and produce an extensive lateral root system to help support their large leaves that grow on a thick or thin, generally tall stem. The tubers should be allowed to grow about 12 inches into the soil. This will give them plenty of room for optimal growth. Smaller type plants of course do not need as much room, but for the larger leafed elephant ears, this is the best way. All aroids come from an area that is naturally humid and tropical or sub-tropical year round. Keep this in mind. They are very diverse in what they can take as far the plant considers abuse. Some will endure or even adapt while others will not tolerate the slightest of an "out of environment experience". Even so, they can and do grow in temperate climates and colder regions with success. It just takes a little more care to achieve their best moods.

Soon after planting, the top anchor roots should rapidly spread out quite a ways in all directions from the plant's crowning region when planted in the ground or large container area. This is to stabilize the tall stems and top heavy leaves that it will be supporting. They also use these same roots to gather nutrients and in some cases, to reproduce via pups from cormels. Next, lower roots grow deeper into the soil which also help anchor the plant to find a stable moisture area and help develop the corm size. The top (lateral) roots near the surface of the soil grow faster than the deeper roots do to give the plant its anchored grounding system to overcome any wind variances and to keep the plants from teetering.

If your plant is teetering, don’t worry, but do use a thin, sturdy stake to help hold it to an upright position and keep it from any potential wind damage. The top lateral roots will quickly spread out and in a week or so, sometimes sooner, and should not need the stake any longer. If possible, plant your aroids in an area that is protected from strong winds.

Despite the range of the root system, they can successfully be container grown for a long time. Years. I do recommend changing the soil every 4 months or at least twice a year to give the plant some freshness and rid the soil of any salt build up from fertilizers.

Again, most aroids like a lot of moisture and humidity during the growing season, but there is always an exception and if you have access to the care about your particular plant you should follow that instead of any general care about aroid elephant ear plants.

Some examples are Alocasia advincula, young Alocasia sarian plants, Alocasia robusta and A. reticulata are prone to quick rot without warning due to too much water or humidity. Actually many young plants are prone to rot it not naturally propagated. I've had this sad experience with the rainy summer of 2005 and a couple over watering cycles at the fault of myself in 2006. Even though they were protected from direct watering from the 45+ days of rain, their roots were not allowed to dry due to the humidity and within 2 weeks an entire crop melted without prior notice. Fungicides are helpful in preventing this if applied before any rot occurs. Most Alocasia plants prefer a drying period after a soggy situation and if at all possible should be kept from a potential soggy situation. An exception is the Borneo Giant and regular green Alocasia Macrorrhiza plants and some Macrorrhiza cultivars. They will do very well if kept moist and in bright, bright shade and/or full sun.

Most aroids do not need fertilizer to grow at a constant rate, but fertilizer will certainly be appreciated by the plant and quickly consumed. If you see a yellow tinge to the leaves or veins, then you should certainly use fertilizer after repotted or relocating. This disorder is usually a micronutrient deficiency and an easily solved issue. Never cheese yourself out with a fertilizer. Usually, the more expensive, the better it is. Another way this can be remedied by the next leaf push is by using one cup of Epsom salts (Magnesium sulfate) spread evenly around the plant's drip line or where the leaves have reached their length extension. If growing in a container place it as close to the outer edge as possible and water in well. Aroids are heavy feeders and drinkers in general and most are truly difficult to kill once they are established. Some are even considered invasive by the U. S. Department of agriculture and some affiliates, although most plant lovers would beg to differ. Myself included.

The soil that they all prefer is a well draining, high in natural nutrient content, moist, rich organic type and tipping slightly to the acidic side of the pH scale. A compost soil is best with large bark chunks. They do not do well in a total dense clay ground. If you have clay, you should add amendments to the soil to allow for less soil compaction and more aeration and drainage. This can be accomplished by mixing in small pebbles and natural course peat or perlite. Perlite tends to float while too much peat could hold too much water. It isn't as difficult as this sounds to make a good soil mix.

Some love standing water and will grow directly in a pond, but you should pull it out every so often to trim the roots unless you have a very large pond. Some fish might like the cover that the roots provide. It is the users choice. If you are going to grow them in a pond, the edges of the pond would be the best or keep it in a container and placed where you can easily reach it to maintain it when needed. The micro-organisms in a live fish pond will happily be taken up by the root system, give your fish a place to hide and feed off the micro-organisms that the roots produce. X. sagittifolium is one that will grow directly in water but the trunk will not usually form. The plant will grow large anyway.

A helpful tip that few know about is to use one cup of Epsom salts per plant per month sprinkled around the base. The alocasia, colocasia, Xanthosoma and even banana plants will LOVE IT! Actually most plants do especially many types of palms. The ingredient in Epsom salts is the element 'magnesium sulfate'. It is not true salt and regular table salt should never be used on your tropicals even though some plants are salt tolerant. If you use salty rocks such as coquina from the sea as a border around your tropicals, it may kill them in a few weeks. Make sure that they are very well washed of all the sea salt content prior to using them. If you do not, the salt leached into the soil can kill your plants slowly or rapidly depending on the amount.

An efficient and effective watering regiment for the Alocasia Plant species is as follows: Water in mornings, allow soil to dry all day, water in morning allow soil to dry. This should stave off any rot, (especially during the humidity of the middle summer months) and retain their moisture for the roots to intake nutrients for optimal growth. If it is extremely hot and dry, then an early afternoon watering on some alocasia plants will be beneficial as long as they will have time to dry before nightfall. Others like mentioned above should only be watered in morning or risk losing them to an unexpected rot.

It is always better to start your plants in filtered light. If you start them in full sun w/moist soil, they will usually take longer to establish themselves but will usually become stronger when they do overcome the shock period. Some plants are not suited for that sunny a position so i recommend that all be started in bright filtered light/bright shade. They will adjust sooner if begun in a filtered light position and then can gradually be introduced to more and more sun each week but keep the soil from drying for extended periods of time during the acclimation. Plants that are grown in high sun from seedlings will adapt to a shady environment without shock.

It is also a very good idea to quarantine all plants for a 1-2 week period to check for pests or diseases so that you do not infect your world with anything harmful. even the best and most careful growers can get an infestation at anytime without notice and is why our plants are used to a regular schedule inspection and spraying cycle for the common household pests. Not much we can do when the caterpillars, locusts and grasshoppers find something to sink their teeth into. they make for good "organic additives" when found.

Everyone can enjoy a tropical look in their home environment, even those as far north as Canada. Most aroids are cold hardy to at least freezing temperatures of 32 although they will melt if left unprotected to a frost. Of course there are those that are truly tropical and those should be brought inside or kept in a greenhouse below temperatures of 50 (to be safe). for the most part, just before the weather is going to change for the season to temperatures below 45 on a steady basis, simply dig up your elephant ears (most will pull right out without harm when grabbed by the base), trim the leaves down to the bulb and allow them to air dry for a few days. The outer most leaves should be pulled downward and they should cleanly rip off the bulbous tuber. You can do this until you reach the center bud without damaging the plant if you're careful. If you choose to air dry them, then they should be stored in a cool dry place that stays around 45-50 degrees. Many choose their basement for this.

Another way to protect them from winters bite is to dig them, trim the leaves as mentioned above and plant them in a container where the soil is just covering the bulb. Keep the soil moist, but not wet at all since a wet soil can cause rot and you may not have a plant come spring time. Most elephant ears are a lot more hardy than once thought and will give years of enjoyment producing new offsets every year to magnify your garden or landscape. Periodically check your tubers for rotted parts if you choose this method and if you find any, simply cut it off with a sharp utensil a little past the rotted spot. treat it with a fungicide and keep that part of the tuber dry as possible.

The first method mentioned will take the elephant ear and other aroid plants longer to come back when the weather warms and the second method will keep the plants growing all winter so when the weather does warm up, they will take off from their break. Some plants can be grown indoors but use caution and never over water. The leaves should be misted daily to reduce browning and desiccation and the root structure kept on the dry side. They also should be able to receive adequate light since they will want to grow. Never fertilize your plants during the winters. They normally will not have enough energy to receive the uptake of nutrients and this can cause burn or death.

In zones that do not get long steady winter temperatures and few freezing over night weather, the ground does not cool down fast enough enough to be harmful if you plan of leaving your plants in the landscape. A good week of warm weather in the high 70's, low 80's will keep the ground warm enough to sustain. This is a great benefit when those sporadic freezing nights and cold days do show as heat rises and frost cloths and other protection can hold in enough heat to protect certain hardier plants effectively. If you live in zone 8 where it can freeze and certainly does frost, all you need is a good mulch over/around the base of the plant and leave the burned leaves as long as you can stand it. It will be added protection from any future frosty nights. All the plants that we have under the oak hammocks are left alone during frost and short freeze spell protection times since we have sporadic cold weather and a warm spell can arrive at any time, even the day after a hard freeze. Of course winter brings drier air as well but just before the cold fronts hit, the rain comes and saturates the soil. This should be perfect for the next few days of an oncoming cold session. Unless it doesn't rain, we keep watering to a minimum. In the event that a known cold snap is surely the case and it isn't expected to rain, we will water in the morning before the temperatures are expected to drop. The plants in this environment usually do not even get frost bit since the oak tree canopy forms a covering over the plants and actually hold in a bit heat from the earth creating what is known as a micro-climate. To be safe, if you can cover them with a frost cloth or other type of added protection, that is always a good idea.

NEVER USE PLASTIC to protect your plants as a sole covering. If you build a structure to cover the plants where plastic is used, make sure that the plastic does not touch the leaves or any part of the plant. It should remain at least 3-4 inches above any leaves. Plastic that is touching the leaves will be filled with a condensation layer between the leaf and the plastic and if the frost doesn't do them in, then the following days sun rays will scorch them. It will defeat the purpose and be a waste of time. Plants along the outer edges of a tree hammock protection zone could be prone to catch the bite of the frost, so those should either be moved or covered. It is better to be safe than sorry and a little diligence pays off in the long run.

One cool thing about giant elephant ear plant leaves (see photo below) is that they protect themselves from the frost. Even when the mature leaves are melted, the plant material below the mature leaves was protected during the frost period if it didn't get too far below freezing temperatures for too long. I took this photo of a group of established Xanthosoma sagittifolia plants that had been bit by a frost a few days before. Here in our section of Florida the temperature may fluctuate drastically from one day to the next. The X. sagittifolia and a few other species of fast growing elephant ear plants take advantage of the warmth immediately and begin growing again. Most Colocasia species are the same way. The photo depicts the new growth within a week after a very hard freeze we had that was into the 20's one night, low 30's for two more consecutively. These particular plants are not shaded by artificial means or tree hammock growth and did melt as you can see. They were protected at one time, but the massive 38" caliper Laurel Oak that covered this area was taken down during Hurricane Jeanne. I jokingly refer to the photo as the sad elephant ears due to the look and droop of the fleshy leaves hanging off the stiff veins. The day after a frost, you will be able to tell immediately if they were effected or not. Either they will appear translucent in color and yellowed or already drooping. Normally the drooping comes about 8-10 hours later and when left on the plant like these, will become a dry paper-ish texture.

As you can see in the photo, there is already one fully matured new leaf on one plant and a new leaf unfurling from the center of another, on its way up and out to soak up the warmth and sun. These giants really love and want to grow and will take full advantage of any warmth be it a 2 day period or a 14 day period in-between cold spells. Don't be dismayed at frost and cold damage, they will usually return!

Colocasia Plants are also known as the wild taro by the natives from Asia that use this elephant ear plant as a food source, usually grow very deep in the soil and can be left alone to the weather. The earth's natural soil depth is usually a good enough covering unless your ground freezes during the winter time. During the cold weather it is advisable to not water your plants unless the soil is bone dry and then only enough to moisten it. Most colocasias are cold hardy to zone 7 with protective mulching. I've heard reports of even colder such as zone 6 on some varieties of colocasias.

Xanthosoma Plants are usually very shallow growing and are easy to pull up or dig up. A thick layer of mulch should be adequate for protection. Keep the watering minimal for these as well, as some are prone to rotting while other plants in the same area will be unscathed. These elephant ear plants are also called taro and some malanga by the same who use this as a secondary food source. Normally it is the X. violaceum that is used for food. I have witnessed this by a friends neighbor who is from Asia. The man grows them as a crop in his back yard and eats the tuber when he feels they are right. I am not an expert on the consumption and do not recommend this since these plants can be poisonous to some people.

Alocasia Plants (from my experience) are more prone to root rot than any with the exception of certain macrorrhiza species that can live directly in water. They too should be taken out of a soggy area for the winter if it is possible. Cold and moisture do not mix with aroid tubers. Think of them as potatoes, they are very similar in biological structure and some are eaten just like we normally eat potatoes. We live in zone 8b/9 border and our Macrorrhiza plants that are under the protection of shade trees don't even lose their leaves during the winter. But if left to frost, they will go down.

If the soil that your aroids are growing in is well draining, (very well draining), then you shouldn't have anything to worry about. Incase you do wish you prevent root rot, apply a simple copper based fungicide (read the directions on the container carefully before applying) and this works quite well. even if rot is present in its early stage. If so, remove the rot with a sharp knife and apply the fungicide and keep watering to a minimum until the plants regain strength.

When the rainy season is long, such as Central Florida experience in 2005 with over 50 days of rain at a minimum of 1 inch per day (sometimes 4 inches!), using a quick release fertilizer that is high in nitrogen is not advised. This can bring on rotting of the stems and leaves and shortly afterwards, the crown. once the crown has rotted, the plant is usually a goner. It can happen so fast that a new leaf will be emerging from a perfectly healthy plant and wham, it falls over. If you want to try and save your plant in the case of a stem rot, remove all the rot that you are able to. Most likely if this has happened the roots are probably mush as well, just get it down to the bulb even if it is small and repot, spray with a copper based fungicide and keep the watering down. I've had experience (sadly) and if you catch it early enough most of the plants will come back in a few weeks. If they are not going to live, they will just rot to a mush in a week or so. If you don't care and have patience, just leave them where they're planted and see what happens in a few weeks. Sometimes although rare, there will have been one tiny piece of the plant that wants to live and you'll see a new leaf. Hasn't happened a lot but it has happened. But I have lost some really nice plants that were well established to high rain fall. No warning signs usually either, just fallen over one day with a new leaf that tried to unfurl.

Most elephant ear type plants really are easier to take care of than just about any plant. yes, some are difficult but what fun would anything be if everything was easy? You can use this same basic care with musa and ensete banana plants. I have read many accounts of collectors digging up their favorite banana trees/plants, leaving them under their house or in their garage for the winter with the leaves trimmed to the newest one. They will pick up growing where they left off even if you are prone to extreme cold temperatures.

Yep, these aroids when they are growing as they should will grow so fast that the oldest leaves will get closer to the ground and eventually turn yellow, die off and dry up. They should be pulled in the opposite direction in which they grew (downward) and should 'neatly' pull off the corm near the base of the plant. If you leave them on it wont hurt the plant. but they can be similar to dried up banana leaves and become a host area for all sorts of unwanted insect and wasps. Palmetto and the cockroach will make their homes in this material and use the top layer of corm as a food source. Besides that it is an eyesore and your landscape will look more beautiful without the dead leaves. They can either be thrown in the compost or placed around the base of the plant as additional organic matter.

Aroids are one of the few plants are known to generate their own heat. This phenomenon is not known by scientists/botanists why this occurs or exactly when or what stimulates the plant to do this. It is thought that morning sun or when the plants begin to flower is when the most heat is generated. This is thought to help create the scents from the lily type flowers that attract pollinating bugs. I found this interesting and thought I'd share.

Most of the elephant ear plants mentioned here are used somewhere as a food staple. Some plants are used boiling the leaves while most are used of their corms as a potato like starchy food. This is common more in the Xanthosoma species than anything due to its rapid growth rate but all varieties are used as far as I have read. Colocasias are turned into a soup like dish named 'Poi' in Hawaii. Where ever they are grown, they are grown and used by the locals for their food source and medicinal purpose. The Alocasia Odora Azurea is said to be a lung cancer cure. I do not know and as I state on a few pages, do not recommend this unless you take full responsibility for your own actions and know what you're doing.

I hope this information was helpful and if you have some advise that you'd like to share or discuss, please let me know.

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