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Central Florida Farms
.Aquascape | Landscape | Rare Tropicals | Fruit Trees | House Plants | Aquarium | Giant Elephant Ear Plants | Banana Plants
Adding Life to Yours! .
. Xanthosoma Elephant Ear Plants
Above is the Variegated Xanthosoma Atrovirens or Mickey Mouse ears Taro Plant Xanthosoma plants are one of the easiest of all elephant ears to grow and are among some of the largest! Once they are established in your area, they should reward you with new babies on a regular basis along with beautiful quilted, and usually large leaves. If they are not large, they certainly will be unique. There are not as many Xanthosoma varieties as Colocasia or Alocasia, but the ones that are here for us to enjoy are spectacular! These are the plants that really pushed me into being a full on tropical plant enthusiast. I hope you enjoy yours as much as me. The Xanthosoma (Araceae family) Elephant ear plant genus has several species that are well known and a few that have eluded the common place in our society yet. Most were described and identified in the early to mid 1800's by botanist Heinrich Wilhelm Schott. A few common names we use today are Giant Ape, Elephant Ear or Elephant's Ear Plant, Dasheen, Blue Tannia, Purple Taro and Malanga and has been confused with Alocasia macrorrhiza. We have just a few available more on the way eventually. I have been experimenting with the breeding of these via seeds. This is an effort not easily obtained in this species let me tell you. Naturally (in the wild), they are pollinated by a scarab beetle that goes deep into the flower and reaching the parts that need to be reached with pollen. When doing this by hand it is a hit and miss, mostly miss procedure. It takes months for the seeds to form and finish ripening unlike the Alocasia species. On many of the government web sites they are stated where they are found growing as a non-native invasive plant. Further research indicates that they are actually native from the South to the North Americas. I disagree that they are a non native invasive plant, at least here in Florida. Invasive would imply that they cannot be controlled, they can certainly be controlled and sometimes don't grow as well you would want them too. I guess this is someone's agenda. Many xanthosoma varieties are used as a food crop by different cultures and southern Florida was known to intentionally produce the xanthosoma plants per acre for the Latin community for about 50 or so years. The X. violaceum and X. plumbae are well known by Asian and South American cultures and I have seen them planted purposefully for the use as food in back yard gardens among the cabbage and other garden crops. A few small local shops sell them as Malanga or Blue Tannia, Dasheen and Taro in the form of roots or rhizome corms. They are very hypoallergenic and need to be prepared a certain way. "Poi" is a dish created from the Colocasia plant if I'm not mistaken. I do not recommend eating them unless you know how to prepare them the correct way. There is also a certain in the leaves or the plant's life when the leaf is edible, but like the Polk Berry plant, I am not sure when this is and the wrong timing can be poisonous. Personally, I'd rather enjoy the top part to look at, but if worse came to worse, I guess I would learn how to prepare them. I hope life never comes to that. Some are faster growing than others and there are unique color ranges and leaf arrangement differences among the species. some being naturally variegated, others being naturally all green, wile sports and stable mutations having color stem and petiole variances. See the link near the bottom of the page on "elephant ear care" for a little more information. These below are the "Kings" of the Xanthosoma imo
These are some of our mother plants. I stand 5'6' and my arm doesn't reach across the leaves! The Giant Elephant Ear (Xanthosoma Sagittifolium / Sagittifolia) - Zone 7-11. Cold Hardy - One of the most tropical looking plants besides a banana plant that you can add to your garden. As you can probably tell by my keeping the pictures larger, they are one of my favorite plants. They are very rewarding to watch grow being fast and large! They bloom all summer and into the winter here in Florida when any warm weather sticks around long enough. They can send out multiple flowers at the same time and I've experienced up to 7 on one. Probably more that I haven't noticed. The flowers are creamy white with a lily appearance and scented. The Giant Elephant Ear is about as Jurassic as a tropical plant gets. They grow to heights of about 12 feet with the leaves growing 3' wide x 4' long on huge trunk like stems. When the wind blows gently, they look like an elephant's ear quietly flapping... makes a great name for these magnificent giants! The petioles (especially near the rachis) have a blue-green, glaucous powdery look as they grow larger. These do grow thick trunk-like stems similar to the Macrorrhiza plants with age that I have had approximately 6" in caliper, but the growth rate is about twice as fast as an Alocasia plant. That's pretty big! They have the ability to get very heavy as well. If they try to grow on the ground, they will probably rot where the ground is touching them or produce pups there. If you want it to grow tall you need to prop it and keep it growing the direction you wish. They will grow phototrophically so they are very easy to train. The tubers can easily be dug up & stored in the winter months for the northern gardeners to protect from freeze. They will come back the next growing season and look like nothing has changed except they will be bigger! These plants look great no matter where you plant them. It's fun to watch them grow since they unusually will push out a leaf a week during the optimal grow season. The leaves will become more sagittate as they gracefully age and petioles thicker as well. Each growing season will give a longer trunk if allowed but will begin to bloom at an early age. Blooming seems to halt or at least stunt the over all plant size and if you can handle it, cut the blooms out when the plants are small to allow them to grow larger. It will not hurt this plant. Just be careful that you do cut into the corm or rot can be a result. Trimming does not seem to affect their happiness if done properly and the center 'bud' is not damaged. To help form the trunk into a thick tree like brown fuzzy sculpture, do not over trim the leaves. Allow them to dry up naturally and cut the petiole off near the base at a level plane with a clean, sharp utensil. try not to allow for any raggedness to left behind. It will get mushy as that part dies, but that's ok. Just allow to dry and it should allow the trunk to get taller and thicker. They will be easy to peel off when manicuring later. The ones we offer here at Central Florida Farms are not dried bulbs or Tissue Cultured Clones.
Picture on left is the X. sagittifolium growing back less than 7 days from a heavy freeze during highs in the 60's! The photo on right is one of our 3ft trunked Plants. Please click the photos for a better view.
Leaves are trimmed for shipping, but are not dormant bulbs, they are growing plants. HUGE ADULT SIZE! Xanthosoma Violaceum - Blue Taro - Zone 7b - Cold Hardy! Purple/Blue Elephant Ears! Wow another one of my favorite finally available! These colorful beauties can grow to heights of almost 6+ feet depending on your climate and growing season. These are grown for food consumption in Nepal and through the Himalayan range up to northeast India. Personally I'd rather have steak and potatoes (although these are used similar to the potato) and enjoy these for their beauty, but if some were to try the tuberous roots, I would like to know what the flavor is like. Actually since I do not know 100% about the edible human consumption, we do not recommend eating these. They need to be prepared a special way or they can be poisonous for human consumption. The leaves are vivid purple/violet veined and stems with same color leaf outlines with the undersides being light pastel green. The upper side of the leaves are a violet hue when first unfurled and slowly turn to a deeper, greener color... giving them the common name it holds. When I say that they are cold hardy, although they will die down for the winter in colder climates, they will come right back when the weather warms again if protected with mulch and produce babies. They will produce babies all though the growing season as well on short runners near the base of the mother plant. So if you want to dramatically add contrast to your garden or landscape, this is an excellent choice that are not invasive unless left to themselves for about 10 years! These do prefer a brighter area than some plants, but will grow well in 50% shade, just slower. ours are grown in about 40% shade right now. If you live in a warm climate, they will get pretty big! They are called the blue taro because when you place them in with your green plants, they do look more blue than violet. You don't even need a neon bulb to bring out the colors. The stems are coated with a powdery deep blue violet color which makes this plant one that's easily identified. Plants grow to 5-6 feet!
Xanthosoma Atrovirens Albo Marginata monstrosum - Zone 7b - Cold Hardy! Growing to heights of 5-6 feet, this one needs no Hollywood introduction to those who are avid fans of variegated plants. Some have claimed that these only attain heights of 3 feet but we have seen them larger and is why we claim the large size. These elephant ears have a uniformed variegation similar to the design of Mickey mouse (from a distance and leaf shadows) and so many have called this plant the "Mickey mouse taro" elephant ear plant. They are very unique as the tips of the leaves form a cup with some having a 'tail' that extends from the cup. When it rains or when watered on the leaves, the cup will hold water. When the leaves mature in size, the end points of the leaves will naturally rip and the leaf tip widens forming a rectangular over all shape. The colors when first emerging from the center of the plant are sometimes a yellow variegation that turns to white as the leaf matures. The green starts out lighter as well then turns more vivid and dark. When the leaf growth is finished, its contrast among the rest of garden is striking will call attention to itself for sure! They like a bright shady position of organically rich moist soil to do their best and do grow larger than most people think, to heights of 4-5 ft with nice big variegated leaves. taller when the trunk begins to form in warmer climates or carefully grown further north. They are very easily noticed even if for some reason this is the only plant around. They are so very easy to grow being a member of the Xanthosoma family, it is sure to be one of your favorites in your garden if you don't already have them. They are tissue cultured clones, but are ready to grow for you and should begin producing babies in a few weeks after establishment. Get them now at a good price before they are gone! The waiting list was long to obtain these plants and the wait time to obtain new orders remains so even today. They can take cold weather a little below freezing, I don't know the actual death temperature but we never need to bring them inside except to preserve the leaves on a few plants from frost damage. Shipping begins Mid June Xanthosoma jeoquinii / jacquinii Lineatum - Zone 7b - Colder Hardy! FANTASTIC FOLIAGE! These unique plants are also in the Xanthosoma family and like the rest, are hardy & easy to grow plants. The leaves are uniformed (almost with the appearance of a painted on look) with a creamy white variegation in a spinal skeleton pattern. The leaf end lobes curl and the petioles are slender and can push the leaves 4-5 feet high when mature. I've found that the more sun they receive, the more the leaves crinkle. The less, the more flat the leaf. Talk about a beautiful specimen to have an admire. The part of the petiole where the leaves are pushed out from are outlined in a light pink color. They prefer a filtered sun light area and will grow in bright shade very well but I do have a few that receive about 4-5 hours of direct afternoon hot sun and the leaves do not get scorched as I would have thought. With all variegated plants, if grown in too much sun, the variegation could burn. These would make an excellent patio or house plant given their low light/shade tolerance. You can't go wrong here as these are just so easy to grow! Great plants for your Florida Room, patio, indoors, pool area or front porch! If you have an area where nothing grows because of the shade, this and most other elephant ears are a perfect choice! Plants grow to 4-5 feet! Xanthosoma Lindenii Magnificum - Zone 7b - Cold Hardy! What a find here! These fairly new to widespread cultivation plants grow to about 4-5 ft tall (in best growing conditions) with very pronounced white veined leaves. Some reports show these as small like a caladium but they do grow large with leaves to 2 1/2ft long and 2ft wide. Very nice contrasting leaves to enter your garden! They are said to be cold hardy to 7b taking mild freezes with mulching to protect them. They will die back like other elephant ears but will come back when the weather warms for the season. These are small yet but will grow fast throughout the summer to give you a pleasant different look. They like a filtered sun position, humidity and moist fertile soil for optimal growth. Another awesome tropical for your Florida room, pool deck, patio or just to add contrast to your favorite elephant ear collection. Since these are a low light tolerating plant would make excellent indoor potted plants! These are in very limited supply and may not be available to the public in large quantities but for a short time. The picture below is a photo of a small potted specimen but they do grow large when thinned out and given care. Xanthosoma Aurea Lime Zinger 'The Big Bright Mafaffa' - Cold Hardy to Zone 7b-11 - Just about everyone who are plant collectors know of this awesome, chartreuse giant elephant ear plant, but is this one living with you at this time? These are not called the "Big Mafaffa" for just any reason. They grow huge like the X. Sagittifolium do, but are a sport from the Xanthosoma mafaffa species, but you'll almost need to be wearing sunglasses to look them in the sunlight. These bright yellow almost glowing plants are rapid growing and like filtered light, but will do well in more sun once they become established. They can live in shade as well, but will not grow as fast and should not receive as much water, still keeping the soil moist. See the pictures for yourself. This is of the smaller ones about the size for sale, placed in with a few other colors to really show off what they produce. As they grow larger, the leaves become more bright and vivid. They just emit a fantastic contrast as soon as they are placed in their setting. Eventually these will sport offsets and you will have more growing to heights of about 5-6 feet! The form a corm like all other Xanthosoma species and can grow even taller on top of that thick trunk like corm. If you've been looking for something to spice up your garden, you have come to the right place! $32.95 - each young Xanthosoma Lime Zinger Mafaffa plant aprox: 10-15" tall shipped bare root - Available Now! Xanthosoma Dwarf Green Atrovirens - Zones 8-11 - Cold Hardy - These are known as the dwarf green, but the leaves sport dark pastel blue leaf tops with very pronounced veins infiltrating the vascular system on dark green stems. These cool little plants will accent your front line of scenery in no time with their dark blue leaves shaped as most of the Xanthosoma species. They are known to be very cold hardy where they will not die during short periods of freezes, but being a subtropical borderline tropical plant will die down in steady weather below 40ºF. The corms will stay safe under the soil or due to their smaller size can be a perfect indoor plant until the weather warms up again. If they do die down for the winter don't be impatient about them the following season. They sometimes take until May or June to emerge and glow blue depending on how warm how fast that spring provides. Growing to a max height of about 2-3 ft they are not overpowering and are not difficult to find a place in the home. Against the green, yellow and red leaves of other plants, these will be a pleasing and welcomed addition to your eyes. The new leaves have a fluffy appearance and the bold color differs from the xanthosoma violaceum plants.
A New beginning, a new Central Florida Farms for 2008!
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