23 Alocasias (Elephant Ears) You Need to Know + Tips for Keeping them Alive!

Welcome, how are you? My name is Amanda from Plantarina and I want to welcome you to this luscious, delicious, glorious world of alocasia. I'm going to talk about all the different types of alocasia that I have and that we also have on plantarina.com, plantarina.com. If you want to get on the list, you will get great deals on all this alocasia. They just, they're big and billowy and large and they have different forms and shapes and colors. They're kind of the best. They're really great accent pieces and just like grab your attention. So that's why I love them and I especially love them during the summer when I can put them outside on the porch like this. Well these are not styled, I just have them a bunch of them on the table, but they love humidity, higher humidity and they get big. I like them big, you know what I mean? So let's just get right to it and go over some of the alocasia. Elephant ear. I always gravitate towards the silvery shiny things in life. I like silver and I like silvery leaves and I like gray silvery leaves. I like pointy silvery leaves. So that's why I'm gravitating towards this alocasia dragon's breath. I just described it and look at this. It has new growth on it and it's going to look great anywhere I put it and as long as I have higher humidity levels, okay? When you bring them inside, gotta crank it up a little bit, crank the moisture in the air and they should be pretty okay. They'll be great. They'll be great. The one thing I do want to say about certain alocasias is that in the winter, you're going to lose leaves. You're going to lose leaves throughout the summer, especially on the bottom because they tend to grow a lot in the summer. So they can't support sometimes all of the vegetation, so the lower leaves might just leave. The lower leaves might leave, so don't be surprised. So this is dragon's breath. Here's an example of a leaf that didn't make it. This was just recently shipped. So sometimes during shipping, you're going to lose a leaf or two, leaf loss, and when that happens, simply cut it off. That was like a sonic boom. Did you hear that? Cut it off, discard it, and lo and behold, there's a brand new leaf shooting up from this central stem here. We call it mousy mouse because it has a name that is used. It is a really famous mouse, but we just can't say it. You know what I'm saying? So you know that mouse, but I don't know why they call it that. Anyway, I like it because of its variegated edges, and it's very, very, very similar to a colocasia. I think I would treat it more like a colocasia, which are more bulbs. They grow from bulbs and alocasia growing from roots. Roots, that's the main difference, but it has a very light effect. It has a halo effect, and it's nice and tall, and they get big. So same thing with this. It's going to be a big, big plant one day. I can't wait till that leaf unfurls. They're so pretty. Let's talk about alocasia black stem. See how these giant leaves look better and better as they get bigger, except the ones that don't. So you just get rid of them. That is nature. We just have to keep nature. We have to maintain. We have to maintain our appearance. So look at this. This is a black stem. As you can tell, it has these gorgeous ebony stems that are almost like they're like a deep, deep maroon, almost black, gorgeous, and then the back sides of the leaves. You can see that they're very, very defined by the dark margins and the veins. See that? I'm making up terms right now. How pretty this is. So put this where it can get big. Put this where it gets a lot of humidity, and let it do its thing. Fertilize these plants, please. Fertilize them. They are fast growers, and they want to eat. So if you feed them, they will reward you by putting out healthier, larger leaves like this alocasia black stem. Let's look at the beautiful stingray. I'm really glad I have these scissors here because I'm cutting off leaves that I don't think are going to make it, and I think every single one I'm going to pick up might have a leaf issue, but I'm okay with it because there's beautiful new growth coming in the same place. In the center, center, the largest stem has this little, this little volunteer coming out. See that? A little volunteer. So they're called, what do I say they're called again? Stingray alocasia because they look like actual stingray aquatic creatures, right? Look at that, and they sit up top these mottled stems that are just glorious to look at as well as the foliage. So they're so pretty. I want to plant them all in one giant planter, but that might be a mistake because they're kind of meant to be individually appreciated. I'm going to show you one planter that I made with a lot of them in it. This is alocasia sarien, and it has a very distinct look. You see it has this wavy leaf like edges, then has this kind of very intense white marking down the center, and it spreads out to the sides. Look, there's another, there's another leaf like that. I just got a giant delivery, so a lot of these had a little bit of, you know, leaf, just a little bit. It happens, but as long as the roots are okay, they're going to be fine. It's similar to the zebrina, what did I say it was before, to the stingray in terms of the markings on the stems. I hope you can get a little tight in there and see that. It's a really gorgeous architectural element. I'm not going to talk too much about each plant because, you know what I'm saying. This is going to grow more. Anything coming out of there? Nothing yet. Give it time. Have patience. Let these guys do their thing. Hilo beauty. Hilo beauty. I'm saying that to everybody. Hilo beauty. Look at that. This is a colocasia. Colocasia and alocasia sometimes are confused because they look so similar. They have similar habits, similar shapes, similar growing needs, growing care needs, the whole thing. But this is usually grown from bulbs, right? But look how pretty it is. Doesn't matter if it's colocasia or alocasia. It sure is pretty. Now we have a few bushier types. This is called alocasia reversa and you can see that it has subtle markings. I'm trying to give it a good light so you can see it. Subtle markings, gray, a little tinge of silver. It is very, very attractive and more dense than some of the other ones we've been looking at. And something that is similar to it and sometimes hard to tell the difference between the two is alocasia mirror face. So can you see the subtle differences between these two plants? Mirror face has, it's a little bit more textured. The leaves have more undulation and I'm just going to look at it so I can, shinier. You can see the difference, can't you? But the habit is the same. The growth pattern, the growth, their growth is the same. Their needs are the same. They need bright indirect light and they'll keep on growing. They'll keep on growing. So they're similar. So reversa, mirror face. These two look similar, but they're not the same plant. Moving on, alocasia and the world of alocasia. The big bad world, the big wild world of alocasia. Now we have alocasia sumo. It's funny, not funny, but I was going to name my dog Chubb sumo, but I got talk out of it. I still think it would have been a great name for a half, half, would it be half bulldog, quarter pug, quarter beagle. I'll put a little picture on the screen. I just found his puppy pictures the other night. Alocasia sumo is a subtle, subtle beauty. You know, the light really does help when I have the light on the plant so you can actually see them, but it has very similar markings in terms of how the midrib is and the veins and all that, that mumbo jumbo, but it's subtle, right? So I like to use these as architectural elements in a planter or in the center of a plant grouping as a, as a centerpiece, you know, whatever I feel I do and I do with sumo. Sumo and I go way back, right? Again, this, these types of plants will drop a leaf or two and then shoot some new growth out. So it gives sumo an opportunity to make itself at home in your home. Sumo, when I get, when I wrestle, I'm going to throw it down with me. It's got a little lopsided. I'm going to have to fake it. So here we go. This is a Alocasia purple sword. There's certain words that my mouth doesn't want to pronounce anymore. I'm just going to put the plant in front of my face like they used to do on Instagram to hide. I'm going to hide. So there's a little leaf damage there. I should, you can't see it. I'm going to keep it off the screen. It's perfect. The plant is perfect. This has a deep, deep maroon stem and very cool undulating leaves like that, like swords. No, swords are pretty straight. Like some are straight. I don't know. Yeah, they're straight. I don't have a sword, but they called it that anyway, because they were running out of plant names because they keep changing plant names, which is so annoying. Stop doing it. I can't remember them to begin with, let alone having to learn a new name. So this has got a little, it got a little knocked around, but there is new growth coming from the bottom here and I can stake it. And once I stake it, the roots are going to kind of reestablish and this will get to be erupt once again. OK, I'm taking a taking a shot in the dark here. My memory is not, it was never good to begin with. So it's a little worse. This is Allocasia calidora and there's also an Allocasia california. Allocasia calidora, again, is a fuller volume plant. See, it has many, many more stems. This is a large size and the leaves are slightly smaller than the California, right? This is calidora. A lot of these plants are very similar, but if you're looking for something that has a little bit more brightness in the green, like the lighter, a lighter color green, calidora is great. And there's a couple of other ones that are too. Yeah. Yeah. Like, I don't know. Scratch that. Scratch that. But if you're if you're looking for a plant that has a lighter color vegetation, foliage, calidora could be it for you. Right. Well, Allocasia lowrider is another one of my top like seven, the top seven plant Allocasia because it has a ruffles. I'm not a big girly girl. I don't really like ruffles and things like that on my clothing. It makes me feel pretty uncomfortable, but I sure like ruffles on plants and I like ruffles on little puppies, rabbits and fluffy things like fluffy things with ruffles. But lowrider has ruffles in the right places. And it also has very interesting, like modeled, spotted pattern stems. So it's just a cool it's a cool plant. It's a cool plant. Another beautiful unfurling leaf there. It's habit is a little bit more like vase shape rather than well, they're all kind of vase shape, I guess. But this looks more like a vase to me, doesn't it? When they're nice and full and big, they grow up tall and the leaves get heavy and they just fall to the side. That's why that's why it's a vase shape. Lowrider. This is Allocasia regal shields. Kind of a common. It's a more common Allocasia, but there's a reason for it being common. I'm going to tell you why you're common because you're so darn, darn attractive and everybody wants you. So there's a lot of you out there and because you actually listen and you do what I tell you to do. What kind of person do you think I am? They grow well. They're easy to care for. Relatively speaking, when we're talking about elephant ears, elephant ears can sometimes be a little tricky to care for because of their higher humidity requirements. Really, that's about it. And their water, you don't want them to get too dry. You don't want them to sit in water. They just kind of let the soil partially dry out and then water it again. So regal shields is one of those classic, you know, like your pair of shoes that goes with everything. That's this plant. This is an interesting beauty. Allocasia triangularis. Look at this beauty. Knows no bounds. Nature gets it right every time. She does. Can we say mother nature? I don't actually don't know anymore. I don't know, but let's say nature. Nature gets it right. I'm not going to talk anymore. Seriously, I'm just going to hold plants up. Point. Gorgeous. Stunner. Head turner. And this is Allocasia Frydeck. I'm going to take this yellow leaf off. I'm going to take this, there's not even, there's nothing left. And I'm going to take this one off. I have scissors. That's going to look better. Less droopy. The Frydeck, I love too, because it has similar, it has that white center line down there, which is really pretty to look at. How much can I really say about the Allocasia? Because they all really have the same care requirements. I just want to show you different types. These do get tall. They get to be about four feet. They need bigger when they're kept outdoors. And indoors, they definitely grow not, not as tall and not as fast. So if you can keep it outside, keep it outside. And if it's going to be under 50 degrees consistently at night or whatever time of the day, bring them inside. They don't really like being, they hate it. They don't like the cold weather. They'll die. Then we have Allocasia Buddha's Palm. And this tends to be a little bit more wrinkly inside the leaf. This one really isn't so much. I'm not sure why, but it's like a cup. It's like a little hand with like wrinkles in the hand. That's why they call it the Buddha's Palm. Similar in growth habit to the low rider, the boz shade and little curvy stems, which are really interesting. This has more of a sculptural architectural feel than the others. The others do too. I'm lying. Allocasia Red Sea Grip. See how pretty that is. I remember when I first saw this plant, I was so happy and I got a little tiny thing in the mail and I raised it to this big and then it died because it got mealybugs. But look how pretty this one is. These leaves just kind of dangle. Look at that. It's like chocolate. They're laughing. They're not laughing. They're saying I'm so pretty. So gorgeous. I don't know where it is. You can't even deal with it. That's that. Allocasia Red Sea Grip. So then we have this Allocasia Silver Dragon that is similar to Mirror Face. You see, but it's the grayer. It has more gray and silver dominating the leaves. And I'm going to take this leaf off. Allocasia Maharani. Maharani. Look at these leaves. Texture all the way. Shape. Check. Score. Form. Yes. Beauty. Absolutely. So look at this. This is they all grow so differently. This looks like it's going to be a moundy little tight plant. This looks like it's going to be whatever it wants to be. Just sprawling and spectacular. This is Allocasia Tiny Dancer with big leaves. I normally see them and have had them. I have another one someplace that has smaller leaves. But look at the larger leaves. Little cup-shaped leaves and very, very structural. I love these plants. I really do. Then what do we got here? Yeah. Allocasia Polly. You've probably seen Polly. You run into this plant, you know, everywhere you go. Bar. Train station. You know, when you're commuting. Yeah. Polly is pretty, pretty popular too. Again, because it has such, it's very defined. It's very, it's very unique and obviously gorgeous. Getting to the end of the video, you can tell that. Here we go. I'm going to end with my favorite. Dragon Tooth. I think I talked about this in my last video and the video before and the video before. Look at Dragon Tooth. Got this dark, great color and this contrast in the scene. Just look at it. Look at this. And I'm not saying anything anymore, except that I think it's my all-time favorite, Allocasia. Sorry, everybody. I lost my mind there completely. All right. Well, that's a lot of Allocasia. They all have pretty much the same care requirements. I'm just going to go over it one more time with you. Bright Indirect Delight. They love Bright Indirect Delight. They like the soil to slightly dry out between watering. They do not like to be completely dry because you'll have a lot of leaf loss. They love to be fertilized, I'd say every two weeks during the growing season with a complete liquid fertilizer or you can put a compost on it. I like the liquid fertilizer for these because it gets in their system faster because they're such fast growers. And keep them in areas that have higher humidity levels. And I would suggest levels over 60, six zero percent will be perfect for them. And don't freak out if they start dropping leaves, just cut them off like I've been doing the entire video and new ones will grow back. And in the winter, if you live in an area that has seasons, they will probably stop growing unless you keep them in a greenhouse or an area that gets a lot of bright light, a lot of humidity, because they'll still think they're outside and summer never ended and you'll probably have them still grow. But that is it. I'll see you soon. Thank you so much for subscribing. Everyone will eat lunch.