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Wild, Wonderful Aroids Part Two - Elephant Ears, Alocasia, Colocasia and Xanthosoma - Page 8

© Marge Talt

If you want to grow these plants in a warm greenhouse, give them a minimum temperature of 60ºF (15ºC), partial shade and high humidity. Pot them in a well drained mix of ground bark, soil, sharp sand and charcoal, planting them so that the top of the rhizome is not below the pot rim. If you pot too low, the bottom leaves may decay at the base. Water freely while in active growth, decreasing water in autumn as the leaves start to fade.

Xanthosoma

Unlike Colocasia and Alocasia, who are of tropical and semi-tropical Asian origin, Xanthosoma is a native American genus. As a rule of thumb, xanthosomas will have a sagittate leaf blade ( there are a few exceptions to this) with a smooth, sometimes waxy upper surface and thick ribs on the lower surface, often quilted at the veins. It also has a collecting vein that runs all around the leaf, just inside the margin. The petiole attaches at the notched edge of the leaf, unlike Colocasia, where the petiole attaches away from the edge of the leaf.

I counted one hundred six distinct species listed on W3TROPICOS plus numerous varieties. There are many edible forms of Xanthosoma sold in the US under the blanket common name of malanga. Other common names include yautia, tannia and tanier for forms that produce tubers/corms (the cocoyams) or belembe and calalous for those grown for leaves. They're also called arrowleaf and elephant ear, plus numerous names in tropical South America, where it is indigenous.

Those forms that make tubers/corms have a large central tuber/corm with a cluster of cormels around it. Thousands of acres of land in Florida are planted with malanga to meet the demands of the Latin Americans living there.

Listed mostly as hardy from USDA zones 9 to 12, Xanthosoma will grow in full sun or partial shade. It needs high humidity and well-drained soil with adequate moisture. It can be grown as a container plant in cooler climates with an optimum growing temperature of around 80ºF (26ºC).

Xanthosoma mafaffa aurea 'Lime Zinger' or 'Green Giant' or 'Lime Green' or simply 'Aurea' or aurea - looks to me like Ipomoea batatas 'Margarita' on steroids. Since 'Margarita' is a favorite of mine, this plant (by whatever name) has also landed on my list of 'must haves'. It is said to reach three to four feet (.91 - 1.21m) in height. Dewey Fisk says on his web page that he once saw it reaching twelve feet (3.65 m) "in an area that had a nice tree canopy and lots of ground moisture and humidity". Wow! I have discovered that this particular shade of glowing lime green is a perfect foil for the purple leaf plants I adore, who really do need a bit of bright foliage to set them off or they rather fade into the woodwork.

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