Alocasia amazonica

La Alocasia amazonica It is the typical plant that you see in a nursery and you want to take home because of how rare and beautiful it is. However, it is also one of the most complicated, as it does not resist cold at all, much less frost. If we leave the windows open or the heating / fan on ... we will harm it, a lot. To this we must add that it does not resist drought or waterlogging, and to be well it needs that the environmental humidity and the temperature be high. Taking all this into account, how is this plant cared for?

In this article we are going to explain all the characteristics and care of the Alocasia Amazonica.

Origin and characteristics

La Alocasia amazonica it is a hybrid plant, its real scientific name being Alocasia x Amazonica. It is also known by the common name of elephant ear. This common name comes from the way they have their leaves. It grows to a height of 3-4 meters, although it is normal for it to stay at 1-2m. Its leaves are large, with a length of 20 to 90cmPetiolate, dark green in color and with very visible white veins on the upper surface, and darker on the underside. These leaves have an arrow-like appearance and are quite shiny. They are broad and bulging leaves and are pronounced in the silvery white color. Its edges are of the edged type in the same tone and are deeply lobed.

A curiosity that has the Alocasia amazonica is that the leaves on the underside are purple, have long petioles and they have a length of approximately 40 centimeters.

The flowers sprout at the end of a very short stem, which is usually not easily seen since they are usually hidden between the leaves. The corm (underground bulb), as well as the rest of the plant, are very toxic: they contain calcium oxalate crystals along with other irritants that apart from numbing the throat, swell the tongue and pharynx, thus making breathing difficult. You have to be careful with the flowers as having the scent can be attracted to animals or the little ones. Flowering takes place in summer and usually blooms only if grown outdoors. If you use it as a houseplant, it is rare that it can flower.

Caring for the Alocasia amazonica

If you want to have a copy, we recommend you take care of it as follows:

• Location:
  • Exterior: in semi-shade, and only if the minimum temperature does not drop below 10ºC.
  • Indoor: in a bright room, with high humidity (you can get it by putting a humidifier, or glasses with water around it) and without drafts.
• Earth:
  • Garden: it must be fertile, loose, with good drainage.
  • Pot: mix 60% black peat + 30% perlite + 10% earthworm humus.
• Irrigation: 3-4 times a week in summer, and every 5 days or so the rest. Use rainwater or lime-free.
• Subscriber: pay with organic fertilizers in spring and summer, once every 15 or 20 days.
• Multiplication: by separation of stems in spring.
• Rusticity: sensitive to cold and frost.

Alocasia amazonica transplant

To this type of plants it does not matter that its roots are a little tight if they are located in pots. This makes it go to speed up your transplant from a smaller pot to a larger one. If you permanently cultivate them in the garden, you shouldn't worry about having to change their location, as long as you've chosen the right one.

If you want or need to transplant to the Alocasia amazonica it is better to wait for the spring time. Once you have decided to transplant it, you should only choose a pot that has a diameter measurement 3 centimeters larger than the previous one. It is not necessary to take a much larger pot since this plant will not give problems about the space where the roots are placed.

To perform the transplant, you just have to water the plant first to be able to moisten the substrate and that there is no loss of it. In addition, it is done to make the transplant task much easier. Next, the root ball is removed from the pot and part of the substrate is removed with the hands due to the roots. The root ball should be placed in the center of the new pot and the rest is just filling the holes with a new substrate. It is advisable to put some ecological compost in it since it is the spring time as we have mentioned previously. It must be ensured that the substrate also has the mixture that we have recommended.

Maintenance

Regarding the maintenance tasks of the Alocasia amazonica We must know that, as the leaves wither, it is advisable to cut them cleanly from the base. We must not only look to see if the leaves look wilted. We just have to look at some characteristics how it is the loss of their brightness and intensity or they begin to yellow. Only by cutting the leaves from the base in a clean way will we be influencing the appearance of new leaves. These are the only maintenance tasks that this plant needs.

To achieve that the new leaves can reach the desired size, which is what characterizes this plant, we must also keep the soil moist. Apart from keeping the soil moist, we must add the appropriate dose of liquid fertilizer to the irrigation water once a week or once every two weeks. Thanks to the contribution of this fertilizer, the size and brightness of the leaves will be adequate in the long term. This will ensure that the function of this plant as a decoration can be given in a simple way.

As you can see, it is a plant that has very few demands and, nevertheless, it can provide a good decoration for both indoors and outdoors. It is made for people initiated in the world of gardening. Therefore, it can be a perfect gift for any friend.

I hope that with this information you can learn more about the Alocasia amazonica and their care.