I copied this from elsewhere on the net. If you're going to plant it outdoors, wait until all threats of frost are gone. Otherwise, you can give it a jump-start indoors by starting it in a pot. You need a large pot at least 18 inches across and deep. Add a good potting soil and some soil polymers, which help retain water and keep the bulb hydrated. Elephant ears are heavy feeders, so add a handful of an all-purpose 10-10-10 fertilizer and mix it into the soil before planting the bulb. Plant the bulb, with the point up, to a depth two times the height of the bulb. Give the bulb a good drink of water and then don't water at all until you see sprouts. Then keep the soil relatively moist. Remember, it's a tropical and a heavy feeder. So once it starts sprouting, feed it every couple of weeks with a water-soluble fertilizer that is diluted to half strength. In no time, this pot will grow big ears. Additionally it said to plant it twice as deep as its diameter. Sounds like you did good...just be careful of cold nights if left outside. Sue

Thanks a lot guys, I think I'll be treating this as a Strelitzia for now. According to your recommendations, it looks like I've been watering it too much, so I have just let it be for the last few days, as well as elevated the pot off the saucer with some hockey pucks to hopefully let the soil aerate better - hopefully root rot doesn't set in. I suppose I'll try watering it closer to once/wk for now, and adjust if necessary based on how moist the soil stays. teisa, it looks like the pictures show up rightside up on our devices, but not on computers (your pic looks fine when viewed on my phone, but is sideways on my cpu). I realize that phones will auto rotate the pics, and computers will often do so with the files as well, but I'm not sure how the pictures on this page are being rotated seeing as how they are embedded. Oh well, I'll try to take landcape pics in the future.

Harriel, I just sent you email which must have confused you further! I had answered a post about the leaves of Eucomis 'Sparkling Burgundy' turning green after bloom on another Forum and when I got your email re "green leaves" just went right into Eucomis mode..just ignore! LOL Anyway, the leaves on Black Magic often come up greenish then darken within a day or so. As to growing inside yearround, leaves won't be as dark (more of a smoky purple) nor will the leaves be as large or tall, and you'd need a very bright window. Perhaps if you divide yours you could try one inside/one outside just to see. The main reason I bring mine in is to get an earlier start in the spring (and to enjoy them all year), but they really prefer outside in summer and more than double in size. I don't think the bone meal will hurt them if thats the reason you mentioned repotting again. I don't use it but I believe it's a fairly mild growth-enhancer for bulb plants in particular. Just wait a day or so and see if your new leaves turn darker. Good luck....josh

There are some things you need to know about Elephant Ears. First of all, there are two basic kinds. One is a great big bulb. These will have leaves that face the sky. The other kind grows on roots. These face the side. If the ones you have face the side, they are very likely invasive. Do a search on Elephant ears and you can read how incredibly difficult these can be to get rid of in your part of the country. I have read that some of the side facers are clump formers, specifically Black Magic. I sure would like to have confirmation of this from someone who grows it. But that's for another discussion. Back to your questions. If you have leaves that are laying on the ground, you can trace them back to their base and cut them off. The plant should regenerate fresh leaves. Any that are withered should be removed too. Cannas (the kinds that grow on roots, not bulbs) like nitrogen and water. They will actually grow in standing water (which is why you see them growing so well in ditches). Even if you damaged your original plant, keep it watered and you should be fine in a few weeks. As far as Miracle Grow is concerned, I don't recommend it ever for a newly planted or newly divided plant. It has very strong salts in it that can be harsh on tender roots. That being said, it's unlikely you hurt Elephant Ears. In the future, try using it at half the strength the bottle calls for, or better yet, use Fish Emulsion which is an organic fertilizer that never fails to do plants a world of good. Back to the invasiveness issue. If you determine that your EEs are the invasive kinds, I would highly recommend that you dig them out before winter comes, if not sooner. Not to worry, you won't get them all out. Any roots that break and remain in the ground will come back next spring. At that point, you may want to transplant a few of them into large pots, so you can enjoy these beautiful plants without having to declare all out war. Again, do a search for several threads on them.