Elephant Ears (additionally know as Colocasias, Alocasias, or Xanthosoma) are heat climate vegetation with giant outsized heart-shaped leaves that resemble the ears of an elephant. Whereas the sorts of vegetation are native to completely different components of the world (South America, Central America, Asia, Africa, and Australia), they’re recognized to be easy-to-grow vegetation that thrive in hotter climates. However they can be utilized as annuals, that are dug as much as winter indoors till it’s heat once more in cooler areas.
Elephant Ears are additionally recognized for his or her fast-growing foliage and the capability to succeed in a mature dimension in only one rising season, making them a great decide for fast summer season greenery or as a point of interest in a flower mattress. Reasonably than conventional bulbs, Elephant Ears develop from corms (additionally referred to as “tubers”), that are a swollen underground stem that resembles a bulb and so they develop over time as they’re planted again and again.
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Often Requested Questions
Are Elephant Ears poisonous to pets or people?
Sure, Elephant Ears are poisonous to each pets and people, so care needs to be taken to position them out of attain of children or pets that could be tempted to nibble on them. It’s additionally a good suggestion to put on lengthy sleeves and gloves when pruning the vegetation because it accommodates a compound that may irritate pores and skin with direct contact.
Can Elephant Ear vegetation keep exterior within the winter?
You’ll need to test the chilly hardiness zones for the number of plant that you just purchase as it might probably differ from one plant to the subsequent. Some winter exterior in areas as chilly as zone 6 whereas others can solely tolerate a zone 9 winter.
How typically ought to I water Elephant Ears?
Elephant Ears are excessive water vegetation and the extra water you give them, the extra they’ll develop! Whereas the bulk favor to have moist (not soggy) soil, some varieties may even be put right into a pot that’s submerged in water and grown as a marsh or pond plant. Throughout summer season, potted vegetation will have to be watered every day (and even a number of occasions a day) to keep away from the soil drying out.
How a lot daylight do Elephant Ears want?
Most varieties need full solar to partial shade, however there are some like Black Magic that favor an excellent shadier state of affairs. If the local weather is extraordinarily scorching, an space that gives some afternoon shade is preferable. Vegetation with darker leaves want extra gentle to maintain their coloration, however the sunnier the spot, the extra you’ll must water the plant to maintain up with its moisture necessities.
If you’re protecting your plant indoors as a houseplant, you’ll need to discover a sunny window the place it’ll obtain a whole lot of vivid, oblique gentle. Keep away from direct daylight on a houseplant as that may trigger leaf burn.
Ought to I fertilize my Elephant Ears?
Like a whole lot of different giant tropical vegetation, Elephant Ears do nicely with heavy feeding, so that you may give them a great normal objective fertilizer at the least as soon as a month.
Temperature and Humidity for Elephant Ears
As they’re largely tropical vegetation, Elephant Ears favor daytime temperatures round 70°F and don’t prefer to go under 60°F at night time. Most vegetation can’t deal with a winter under USDA zones 8 or 9, except varieties just like the Colocasia esculenta Pink China that may survive cooler climates like zone 6.
These vegetation thrive in excessive humidity, so they’ll battle open air in a hot-yet-dry local weather. You need to use a humidifier close to an Elephant Ear houseplant or mist the plant typically.
Planting Elephant Ears
Test the number of Elephant Ear you may have for spacing earlier than planting as they will develop between 2-6′ extensive. You’ll need to wait to plant till nighttime temperatures are constantly between 50-60°F. Plant corms 4-6″ deep (bigger corms are planted on the deeper aspect) in nicely draining soil.
If rising in a container, plant the Elephant Ear in nicely draining soil in a big container with drainage holes. Use a mixture of potting combine (add vermiculite or perlite to assist the soil correctly drain if not already included in your combine) and a heavy dose of natural matter for vitamins (issues like plant roots, leaves, mulch and animal manures).
Repotting Elephant Ears
You possibly can repot a potted Elephant Ear that’s outgrown its container by dividing the plant, separating any new corms from the primary bulb, and repotting the divided plant and new corms in contemporary soil.
Pruning Elephant Ears
Throughout the summer season rising season, you’ll be able to lower off any brown leaves on indoor or outside vegetation on the base of the plant to make means for brand spanking new development.
If you’re leaving your Elephant Ears exterior all yr lengthy, you’ll need to lower them again to organize them for winter. After the primary frost, you need to lower the plant stalks right down to about 2-3″ off the bottom and the plant will regrow throughout the subsequent heat season.
TIP: It’s a good suggestion to put on lengthy sleeves and gloves when pruning an Elephant Ear because it accommodates a compound that may irritate pores and skin with direct contact.
Overwintering
Earlier than the primary frost, in zones 3-7, vegetation must be dug up and introduced inside. You possibly can both prune again the stems and dig the corm as much as retailer in a cool, dry place over the winter (like a basement or storage so long as it’s not freezing in there). Lay the freshly dug corm out to air dry for per week to stop root rot, then wrap in paper and retailer in a cardboard field.
To create a houseplant over the winter, you’ll be able to go away a few leaves intact and plant the Elephant Ear in a container till the climate warms up once more. In case you selected the houseplant route, you’ll need to “harden” the vegetation within the spring by transferring them to a lined porch for a couple of days to acclimate to the outside earlier than planting within the floor.
Propagating and Dividing Elephant Ears
Whenever you dig up your corm on the finish of a season, you’ll see that there are smaller corms beginning to offshoot from the primary bulb. Carrying gloves to guard from the sap, merely break off the smaller corms (or lower off with a sterile knife), permit the lower areas to dry and heal, after which wrap them in paper to retailer along with your essential corms over the winter. Plant the small corms within the spring to supply extra vegetation.
Forms of Elephant Ears
The selection of Elephant Ear varieties is quite a few, however the preferred ones come from the Alocasia, Colocasia, and Xanthosoma genus:
Alocasia
- Polly: A smaller cultivar, this plant showcases ruffled leaves with white veins.
- Zebrina: A standout species with zebra-striped stems.
Colocasia
- Espresso Cups: This hybrid plant boasts a novel leaf form because the foliage folds upwards to kind a cup form.
- Black Magic: This selection has purple-black leaves and is among the hottest black leaf cultivars.
- Thailand Large: One of many largest varieties, these leaves can develop as much as 4′ extensive by 5′ lengthy.
- Illustris: Extraordinarily darkish inexperienced matte leaves are the hallmark of this plant. Shiny inexperienced veins accent the leaves, and, moderately than corms, the vegetation unfold by underground runners.
Xanthosoma
- Lime Zinger: These giant chartreuse to lime-green leaves have arrow-shaped leaves. It grows 2 to 4′ tall and as much as 3′ extensive.
- X. lindenii: This selection showcases a lovely silvery and white leaf.
Diagnosing widespread issues
- Pests: Aphids, mealybugs, and spider mites are the primary pests for Elephant Ears. If an an infection happens, apply a horticultural cleaning soap to the leaves to deal with the pests.
- Fungal leaf blight: A extra widespread problem for Elephant Ears, if you happen to see lesions that ooze a purple or yellow fluid, you’ll need to take away the affected stalks and leaves earlier than it spreads to the remainder of the plant.
- Yellow leaves: This is usually a signal that the plant is getting both an excessive amount of or too little daylight, that you’re overwatering or under-watering, or that you’re over fertilizing or beneath fertilizing. Tweak your water and feeding first to see if that helps after which contemplate altering its location if the yellowing continues. Yellow leaves may seem when the plant is solely beginning to go dormant for the season.
- Drooping leaves: Leaves can droop in the event that they develop into too heavy (you should utilize a stake if wanted) or as a result of it’s good to regulate their water, meals, or gentle degree. Temperature may trigger the leaves to droop if it turns into too chilly.
- Wilted leaves: Usually, wilting leaves are resulting from too little gentle or water. Strive watering extra typically and transfer to a much less sunnier spot if that doesn’t do the trick.
- Stunted leaves: Leaves that keep smaller or develop in deformed normally point out that you just want extra meals, gentle, or water.
Often Requested Questions
Is Elephant Ear the identical as Taro?
Colocasia esculenta is the species of Elephant Ear that Taro comes from. The corms of the plant are harvested and used equally to potatoes for meals after being peeled and cooked.
