i've been looking at this one for a while. finally decided to get it. :) an id is needed. also, what conditions does it need - sun light level, watering, soil, etc. thanks!!
Good to see you on here joclyn. I believe it is an Alocasia amazonica, but don't quote me on it. I have one growing in filtered light and the other gets shade most of the day with a couple of hours of full sun in the middle of the day. I have found mine gets pretty thirsty. I have also found that mine seem to die down in winter for some reason. Brian, Mick, LariAnn or others, is this natural for this to die down in winter in the sub tropic's Oh BTW when mine was in its prime it was about 4ft tall. I also remember another thread on here somewhere about this plant, where a grower in the Phillipines I believe, was growing it in a bog type arrangement in full sun. If you do a search you might find it. I hope I helped a little bit joclyn Ed
hi, ed!! would it still die down if kept inside? and, why didn't the thumbnails show? i've posted pics before and they showed??
I'm unsure on both questions joclyn I'm afraid. Need one of the regulars to answer the first one. Did you put in a link or manage attachments? Ed
i put in a thumbnail link created at pb and this site took it out. img code seems to be turned off for me?? i'll have to ask dan about it. i just posted on the thread brian started...funny! i'd just found his site a couple of weeks ago!! very nice!! maybe he'll see this - i'm sure he'll be able to tell me if it'll die back or not.
Joclyn, look up Alocasia micholitziana. Although the name Ed gave you is correct, it isn't a scientific name. It is a trade name for your plant. That plant has a bunch of trade names including Alocasia 'frydek'. It is now commonly produced in tissue culture and has been hybridized. LariAnn, our resident Alocasia guru, can fill in the details much better than I. There are several pages on the net about Alocasia micholitziana and since I know you've read information from my site, you can find one there as well. Hopefully LariAnn will be right along to add more information.
Joclyn, Your plant is definitely Alocasia amazonica; it will go dormant if the temps get too cool (50s) and you do need to keep the soil well-draining and let it dry somewhat between waterings if you want to avoid loss do to rot, at least in my experience. The plant prefers part to full shade. Your second picture is a little out of focus which makes it look more like tha Alocasia 'Frydek', which is considered to be a type of Alocasia micholitziana, but your shiny leaves and wavy leaf edges confirm that it is A. amazonica. A. amazonica is a hybrid and in the relatively recent past, several new cultivars of this plant have come into the market; on is called 'Polly', and yours may very well be a 'Polly'. Alocasia micholitziana 'Frydek', on the other hand, has leaves with a velvety look, no shine at all, and no purple or maroon color on the undersides as the A. amazonica has. LariAnn Aroidia Research
thanks, everyone!! it DOES have purple undersides - i didn't think about taking a pic of it tho! i shouldn't see it going dormant - even if i end up keeping it in the kitchen (which doesn't have an radiator in it) it doesn't get below the upper 60's, so that should be okay. it's in basic peat. that's not good for the long run. what's better? cactus mix or orchid mix or a combo of the two?? and clay or plastic for the pot? 'nother thing. is this harmful to the cat if he decided to play with/chew the leaves?? he's only actually eaten the av flowers (so far) but i do periodically see teeth marks on stuff - he's not eating anything, just playing with it. i wouldn't want to put him in danger tho (i have a spot i could put this and keep the cat out of the room if i need to). steve, i thought of your site when i brought this home. just didn't have time to go read up on it. actually, i'd seen this plant a while ago (and had no idea what it was) and then when i was on your site, i saw a pic so i had an id for it. when i went back to the store that had had it, they didn't have any left (i hate to buy stuff that i don't know what it is, so i'd originally passed it by). they just got a new shipment in and had half a dozen, so i finally got it :)
I was quite excited to see Bill's post today. I had been told several times your plant was a hybrid from of Alocasia micholitziana so both LariAnn and Bill's posts were very educational for me! I'm really excited about this forum because there are lots of good people out there I can learn from! So all you guys, keep those posts coming! Regarding your cat eating your plant, look up the article on my website about calcium oxalate crystals. I think you'll find most of the answers there you are seeking.
And regrowth I am getting, it is just send a new leaf up this morning. Before I was into aroids I kept thinking this plant was dying, so I would throw it away. I was just about to do the same thing with this one, so thanks guys for the info, another aroid saved by the bell.... Ed
The second one looks a lot like alocasia amazonica polly those are pretty easy to maintain to me and have done well in sphagnum moss or peat moss. I work in a greenhouse and i have to take care of many plants and that one has been pretty easy when i water it about once to twice a week... ( sphagnum moss loves to dry out..) ;)
And on that, you are correct. All forms of Alocasia Amazonica (which is not a scientific name) were hybridized using a variety of Alocasia species. Apparently some used Alocasia micholitziana as a base while others were also used. Some of the hybrids were created by crossing Alocasia watsoniana x Alocasia sanderiana and some sources indicate the parentage to be Alocasia watsoniana x Alocasia noblis. A. watsoniana is now correctly Alocasia longiloba since botanist Alistair Hay completed his study on Alocasia and determined many of the "species" were simply synonym names of Alocasia longiloba.
