Please educate me about elephant ear bulbs
kitasei
4 years ago
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nicholsworth Z6 Indianapolis
4 years agokitasei
4 years agolast modified: 4 years agoRelated Discussions
Elephant ears - disappointed in the bulb selection
Comments (4)I used to buy the softball sized ones when I could find them but came to realize the small ones grow very large over the summer anyways. Especially if they are in the pond with the koi fertilizing the water for them!! Now I buy them from the grocery store and have very good luck with them. very cheap compared to the nursery. The only ones I overwinter are the more uncommon ones....See MoreElephant ear- Large bulb type from Home Depot
Comments (12)Thanks for posting this question, dsacco85. I hope you don't mind me adding to this thread but since it's the same subject I thought it would be better to keep these questions together for others who might be looking for the same answers later. I also bought one of the giant elephant ear bulbs from Home Depot, it's very different from Colocasia. Mine grew from a grapefruit sized bulb to 2 grapefruit sized bulbs stacked one atop the other when I dug it last fall. The bottom bulb has shriveled badly over the winter but there are several smaller bulbs embedded into it. I'm very glad to read I can remove the lower section and plant the upper section seperate, should I dig out the smaller bulbs from the mother bulb or should I plant the whole thing and plan to seperate the bulbs this fall? Some could be easily detatched, but others are firmly embedded. BTW, one of side bulbs broke off as I was loosening soil on Monday, by Wednesday it appears to have calloused over nicely. I was thinking of dusting them with old rooting hormone but cinnamon seems like a much better idea. Also, I would agree with Evan that perhaps you should leave more top when you cut back next fall. I left about a foot of stem on mine and it dried quite well over the winter. On the other hand, my mother bulb did shrivel over the winter, I wonder if that would have a difference? Fun thread. Jeanne Here is a link that might be useful: Old FB profile pic with giant EE...See MoreElephant Ear Bulb
Comments (8)Hi, I planted one a few weeks ago and it already had a pointy sprout on the top of the bulb so I planted this just poking out above the soil line. It said on the pack to plant the top of the bulb a couple of inches below soil level. My bulb was fat and round, wonder if yours looked the same? Here's a pic of it so far...to get it going (I live in the UK and dont have your temps), I placed a clear plastic cover over the soil and the sprout opened quickly once it rooted and got going. Been some confusion over it's name..see my other post 'ALOCASIA/COLOCASIA' a few posts down on this page which 'may' give you some more info or confuse you like me! Think I will keep it in my g/h though as it looks like the leaves could get damaged in the winds....See MoreElephant Ears - just where does the bulb begin??
Comments (2)Elephant Ears don't grow from a bulb like Tulips or Lilies. They actually grow from a tuber or rhizome and so are more like Dahlias or Cannas. You have cut into the tuber but it is okay so long as you leave a few of the roots and side stems which you have done. Actually, You can propagate more plants for elsewhere in your gardens simply by cutting the tuber into pieces. Just be sure to leave a few of the roots and side stems on each piece. Plant them as usual. They may be smaller the first year but will grow bigger each and every year thereafter. For more information search for "how to propagate an elephant ear" in Google - lots of sites come up. I hope this helps....See Morenicholsworth Z6 Indianapolis
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nicholsworth Z6 Indianapolis