Alocasia is a flowering plant that looks attractive due to its broad, heart-shaped leaves. Commonly known as elephant’s ear, Alocasia can be an eye-catching element in your living room or home garden. It is an ornamental plant available in hybrids and other varieties. If you plan to grow Alocasia plant at home, make sure its soil, water, and sunlight needs are proper. Here is the guide to grow and maintain the plant at home.
Alocasia plants have become increasingly popular over the last few years, prized for their large, tropical-looking leaves and exotic vibe. But beyond just being pretty to look at, alocasia plants actually have many versatile uses. Here are some of the top and most popular ways people are utilizing these stunning plants both indoors and out.
Bringing the Tropics Indoors
One of the main reasons alocasia plants have surged in popularity is their ability to make any indoor space feel more tropical and lush. Their huge heart-shaped leaves with prominent veins evoke the lush jungles of Southeast Asia and the Pacific Islands where many alocasia species originate.
Placing alocasia plants like the popular Alocasia Amazonica or Alocasia Polly in corners of rooms on plant stands, or on shelves is an easy way to inject a tropical vibe. Their leaf shapes and sizes add drama while their crisp bright green colors energize. Just looking at an alocasia plant can make you feel transported.
Adding Striking Focal Points
With leaves that can grow over 3 feet long on some varieties, alocasia plants make excellent focal points in both indoor and outdoor spaces Their leaves have an iconic, sculptural quality that naturally draws the eye.
Place an alocasia prominently in the corner of a room to create a living work of art. Position one at the center of an outdoor bed or border for a big burst of tropical flair. Alocasia’s upright growth habit also works nicely in containers on a patio or deck. Let them take center stage for maximum impact.
Offering Endless Variety
There are around 60 species of alocasia and many have multiple cultivars. This means there is an absolutely astounding amount of diversity when it comes to leaf size, shape, color, and texture. There truly is an alocasia to fit any design scheme or personal taste.
From giant varieties like Alocasia Macrorrhizos that have leaves approaching 6 feet long to tiny Jewel Alocasias maxing out around 1 foot tall, the range is incredible. You’ll also find black leaves, silver leaves, narrow leaves, ruffled leaves – the variety seems endless!
Adding Height and Structure
Alocasias are naturally tall, vertical plants, with some varieties reaching 10 feet or more in height. This makes them a great choice when looking to add height and structure to indoor and outdoor spaces.
Outdoors, use large alocasia varieties as the backbone of tropical garden beds. Indoors, place them in corners to help draw the eye up and make rooms feel more expansive and open. Their sturdy stalks also work nicely to fill empty floor spaces with structure and greenery.
Bringing the Outdoors In
In addition to evoking a tropical paradise, alocasia plants also help create a stronger connection to the beauty of the natural world indoors. Caring for these lush, imposing plants and watching their incredible leaves unfurl gives many plant parents a sense of joy and calm.
Having large, vibrant alocasia plants in a home or office helps purify the air while reminding us of the wonders of the plant kingdom. It brings a piece of outdoors inside – something we all need more of!
Adding Striking Style as Houseplants
With so much variety in leaf shape, color, and size, it’s easy to find an alocasia houseplant to complement your unique personal interior design style. Whether your home decor vibe is modern, bohemian, minimalist, or traditional, one of these stunning plants is sure to fit right in.
More compact Jewel Alocasia varieties work nicely on shelves in modern, minimalist spaces. Larger, upright varieties like Alocasia Polly add drama to boho or eclectic rooms. Truly, an alocasia for every decor taste exists.
Offering Low-Care Greenery
While not the absolute easiest houseplants, many alocasia varieties like Alocasia Polly and Alocasia Amazonica are still considered relatively low maintenance. Given their lush, tropical appearance, they are surprisingly adaptable to the temperature, light, and humidity found in most homes.
Provided with bright, indirect light and kept evenly moist, these plants will grow quickly and reliably in indoor environments and add life with little fuss. Their natural lushness belies their tolerant nature.
Adding Textural Contrast
The prominent veining and crisp edges of alocasia leaves provide excellent textural contrast when paired with soft, delicate foliage. For example, pairing an alocasia with a heart leaf philodendron creates visual interest.
Outdoors, surround a bold alocasia with soft grasses and delicate perennials. Indoors, place next to ferns or pothos plants. The juxtaposition of the crisp alocasia against billowy soft foliage is very visually striking.
Complementing Water Features
Alocasias evoke tropical waterfalls, rainforests, and steamy jungles in their native habitats. For this reason they pair beautifully with water features to create a seamless indoor-outdoor tropical feel.
Place alocasia plants around backyard ponds and waterfalls for a seamless look. Indoors, situate them near fountains and other water features to bring the look together. The sound of trickling water paired with huge alocasia leaves is wonderfully transporting.
Adding a Bold Tropical Accent
With leaves sometimes measuring over 3 feet long, alocasia plants are statement-makers. Their huge, imposing leaves are full of tropical character and immediately grab the eye.
Use large-leaved alocasia varieties as bold accents at the back of garden borders or beds. Indoors, place them where their leaves can’t be missed to infuse spaces with instant jungle vibes. No other accent plant packs as much visual punch!
Alocasia varieties: Best types of Alocasias
Around 100 species of Alocasia plants are available, and most of them can be kept as houseplants. Nearly 90 accepted species of Alocasia are found in tropical and subtropical Asia and eastern Australia.
Some of the varieties are mentioned below:
- Longiloba (Tiger taro): This variety of Alocasia plant has dark greyish, green foliage with white veins. It reaches a maximum height of around three feet.
- Macrorhiza (Giant taro): Macrorhiza is among the popular and largest houseplant varieties of Alocasia. It grows up to 15 feet in height with three-to-four-feet long leaves.
- Amazonica (Polly alocasia): Amazonica species of Alocasia is a compact 18-inch plant and characterised by wavy, arrow-shaped red leaves.
- Cuprea ‘Red Secret’: This variety is three-feet-tall and knowns for its metallic bronze-red leaves.
- Alocasia ‘Zebrina’: This is a hybrid variety that grows to have arrow-shaped leaves and leggy, zebra-like stalks. Typically, it exists as a small plant and may grow large over a period.
- Reginula ‘Black Velvet’: This is a compact variety known for its dark green leaves and white veins and grows up to 18 inches in size.
- Alocasia amazonica ‘Bambino’: This is a dwarf variety of the Alocasia plant, which reaches a maximum height of 12 inches. The growing conditions of this plant are similar to those of other varieties. It can thrive in high humidity.
- Alocasia amazonica ‘Ivory Coast’: This is fast-growing variety of the plant, which grows up to a maximum height of 30 cm and width of 20 cm.
- Alocasia micholitziana ‘Frydek’: Alocasia Frydek is another popular variety of the Alocasia plant and thrives in optimum levels of water, light and soil. Make sure the plant receives adequate moisture and regular watering. It thrives well in high humidity levels.
The plant has a short growing season in northern region type of climate, but it grows rapidly. They produce new leaves every week and each leaf may be twice bigger than the previous week’s leaf. In its dormant period, the plant starts resting and the fast growth stops.
The Alocasia plant has varying needs from shade to full sunlight, based on its variety. Leaf colour is likely to be better in plants that grow best with maximum sunlight. Alocasia species survive in shade and bigger varieties may be trained to withstand the full tropical sun.
Grow the plant in loose, well-drained potting mix. You can also use crumbly loamy soil. Alocasia plant prefers slightly acidic soil, available in a standard peat-based potting mix.
The plant must be kept moist throughout the year. However, do not allow it to get soggy. In winter, when it is dormant, it has less water requirements. Before watering the plant, make sure the top surface up to a few inches is nearly dry.
Some varieties of the Alocasia plant do not thrive in cold weather and re-sprout from the rhizome. Hence, the plant should not be exposed to temperatures below 15 degrees Celsius. They thrive well in humid environment. Keep the plant in a tray filled with pebbles and add water till it rises to little below the bottom of the container. It will help increase the humidity. Do not keep the plant exposed to cold air drafts from windows, doors, and air conditioning.
Large specimens of the plant may have high fertiliser needs. Provide it with liquid fertilizer once or twice a month. A 20-20-20 formulation is ideal for the plant in growing season.
Regularly trim the dry leaves of the plant and allow new leaves to appear.
How poisonous is Alocasia?
Alocasia may be toxic and dangerous if ingested. Thus, it should be kept away from children and pets.
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