Elephant Ears

Other plants we have or landscape elements like ponds.

Moderator: needmore

johnw
Posts: 1617
Joined: Sun May 06, 2012 1:28 pm
Location info: 0
Bamboo Society Membership: EBS - Germany
Location: HALIFAX, NOVA SCOTIA

Re: Elephant Ears

Post by johnw »

Brad - Nicely grown plants there!

Friend here has a second house in Iquitos, Peru. It's on the edge of the Amazon, very wet and very consistently & unbearably hot & humid. He bought a bunch of Alocasias & Colocasias from Plants Delight last winter and planted them in the new garden in February. He says there's no real soil just dense hard pan with leaf litter atop. Thai Giant was over 10ft tall when he was last there in early August. Now what?

Rain at last here & heavy.
johnw coastal Nova Scotia
User avatar
JWH
Posts: 506
Joined: Sun Feb 24, 2013 1:56 am
Location info: 0
Location: Seabeck, Washington Zone 8b Elevation: 531 Feet
Contact:

Re: Elephant Ears

Post by JWH »

All of my alocasias died and turned to mush in the greenhouse over the winter :(

But most of the colocasias overwintered nicely and are putting up new leaves. The variety 'Pink China' overwintered the best it seems very cold tolerant and was the first to start growing again.
Alan_L
Posts: 2966
Joined: Sat Jan 03, 2009 4:13 pm
Location info: 81
Location: St. Louis area

Re: Elephant Ears

Post by Alan_L »

'Pink China' (is it 'China Pink'?) is supposed to be cold-hardy to z6. I think I've left a few tubers in the ground before but not sure -- they didn't come back if I did. The only Colocasia I've ever had trouble overwintering in the garage was C. gigantea, but the rest are all bulletproof.
User avatar
JWH
Posts: 506
Joined: Sun Feb 24, 2013 1:56 am
Location info: 0
Location: Seabeck, Washington Zone 8b Elevation: 531 Feet
Contact:

Re: Elephant Ears

Post by JWH »

Alan_L wrote:'Pink China' (is it 'China Pink'?) is supposed to be cold-hardy to z6. I think I've left a few tubers in the ground before but not sure -- they didn't come back if I did. The only Colocasia I've ever had trouble overwintering in the garage was C. gigantea, but the rest are all bulletproof.
China pink sounds alot better! But it's labled as pink china. :roll:

C.gigantea 'thai giant', 'black ruffles', and 'black magic' look like goners here, there might be some baby tubers in the pots, but I haven't gotten around to checking them yet.
User avatar
JWH
Posts: 506
Joined: Sun Feb 24, 2013 1:56 am
Location info: 0
Location: Seabeck, Washington Zone 8b Elevation: 531 Feet
Contact:

Re: Elephant Ears

Post by JWH »

I broke up the soil in the pots of 'thai giant' 'noble gigante' 'black ruffles' and 'black magic' yesterday, completely rotten...

Most of Colocasia 'Jacks Giant' tuber rotted, but it still has some life left in it on the underside!

Image
User avatar
JWH
Posts: 506
Joined: Sun Feb 24, 2013 1:56 am
Location info: 0
Location: Seabeck, Washington Zone 8b Elevation: 531 Feet
Contact:

Re: Elephant Ears

Post by JWH »

johnw wrote:
JWH - Try the Calla called 'Crowborough', I saw it growing out of a compost heap in St. John's, Newfoundland so it must tolerate winter wet, and cold too. Said to be the hardiest one back in good old cold days.

john
These probably aren't anything special, but yesterday, I bought the nicest, healthiest pair of white calla lillies i've seen before....at the grocery store of all places!

I planted them together in a 10gal pot this morning.

Image

Image

Image

30cm/12inch ruler for scale
Image
pokenei
Posts: 407
Joined: Sun Nov 27, 2011 7:18 pm
Location info: 0
Location: Toronto (north)

Re: Elephant Ears

Post by pokenei »

This is my Bac Ha plant. I left it in the garage over the Winter. I am pretty sure it must've gotten down to double digit (Celsius) lows in there and so these guys are hardier than I had expected.

I will try over wintering them in the ground near the foundation this Winter and see if they will come back. The stems will die for sure, but there will be plenty of little bulbs that may survive the cold.
Attachments
BacHa Rebirth.jpg
User avatar
kreos123
Posts: 97
Joined: Thu Oct 09, 2008 10:53 am
Location info: 0
Location: Croatia 7a

Re: Elephant Ears

Post by kreos123 »

My alo & colocasia

New pictures.

Colocasia gigantea
Image

Image

Colocasia 'Pink China'
Image

C. 'Elepaio'

Image

Alocasia odora and macrrorhiza

Image

Alocasia brisbanensis

Image

A. 'Mayan Mask' and 'Regal Shields'

Image

Alocasia gageana 'Variegata'

Image
Post Reply