Alocasia & Colocasia from Chumley

[Kansas]

About a month ago Robert Chumley was nice enough to send me some samples of his Alocasia & Colocasia. I have no idea what types they are, but I absolutely LOVE LOVE LOVE them! My favorite is the black one which is very hard to see

[Knnn]

Very nice

See if you can get some names , will help you fine tune the coditions they need.
Any more "sampler" packs available?

[Bgreen]

Hey Wes,

Nice collection you got there. It will be interesting to find out what they are.
The one to the lower far right looks like an alocasia 'hilo' and the stem of the big
guy in front looks like my alocasia 'sarian'. I won't even guess at the rest, lol.

[Kansas]

Update pics....















Sorry still no ID's, but if anybody can give a shot at IDing them....

[Bgreen]

Nice plants!

I still think #4 is an Alocasia 'Hilo Beauty'
The others..? It will be nice to see how big they get next year..

Are you planning on keeping them growing over the winter?

[Kansas]

I will TRY to keep them in the Greenhouse, but not sure how that will go.

[Bgreen]

Alright, some ID's for you.
I asked Brian from Brian's Botanicals http://www.briansbotanicals.net/
To take a look at this post and help if he could. Below is was he sent me in responce:

First single plant is Alocasia wentii aparently a very hardy Alocasia possibly zone 7 or 8

The next one down looks to be Colocasia yellow splash. have had it over winter in zone6 with heavy mulching. Leaves are blotched with yellow.

Third is Alocasia plumbea nigra this not a extremely fast grower and is considered zone9 and up. It also looks to have a bit of spidermites on the older leaves they may want to spray all the plants to be sure to keep it form infesting the others.

Next is Alocasia Hilo Beauty. This thing is most likely a Caladium but no one is for sure sense a flower has never been seen or atleast photographed.

Last is Alocasia plumbea white stems or sometimes known as variegated. It will produce pink stems and dark green leaves some darker streaks and blotches will get on the stems and leaves as it matures.

[Kansas]

AWESOME! Thanks a million. Now I can label them.

[chumleycycads.com]

No it's not 'Hilo Beauty'.......This plant gets 5-6' high........Hilo Beauty is a dwarf plant never getting more than 6-8 " high which I have also.

[chumleycycads.com]

The large last alocasia shown with pink stems with the poka-dot black markings is an alocasia I found inthe wilds in Honduras in 1978 , twenty nine years ago
while on a cycad collecting trip near Olanchito, Honduras , a small village about 3 hours by small plane into the interior of the country. It has proved to be the most vigourous growing alocasia I,ve ever come across, growing faster than most. Thanks to that trip, there are a few of them scattered about over the years from plants I have given away. You can read about that trip on my web site chumleycycads.com in the "About Me" section. I warn you though, I'm a little younger in the photo than I am now. Robert Chumley

[Kansas]

Thanks for brining this post back up as just as chance would have it, I was in the greenhouse yesterday (Saturday) for the first time since Last Saturday (Had ACL Surgery Monday) and noticed that all these had died back to the stem and are now re growing new leaves.
I knew thru the Winter I would leave them to die back and then come back in March, but DANG they are trying to leave right now.
OK, here is a million $ question thou. This Spring, should I move these out of the pots with soil in them, and instead put them in a pebble rock medium with no soil, and leave them submerged in a decorative pond?

[chumleycycads.com]

No Wes, leave them in pots with loamy soil. These are alocasia. They do not grow in water as an aquatic plant would, like some colacasia.
Brian Williams is an old friend of mine and I have asked him to reveiw this forum post, and if necessary I will send him some alocasia for his identification