General Description

• Elephant ears are one plant that lives up to its name. Not only are the leaves as big as an elephant's, but they have the same shape as well. Elephant ear plants can grow anywhere from 3 to 5 feet high, love sunshine--but can grow in part shade conditions as well--heat and high humidity.
  
  

Growing

• Elephant ears grow from bulbs. Plant them in the spring and use a well drained organic soil. Either add compost from your compost pile to the soil or buy some organic soil mix from the garden center. In the warmer climates, zones 7 to10, the bulbs can winter over in the garden as long as you cover them with a layer of mulch. Where the winter is colder, zones 4 to 6, dig up the bulbs in the fall and keep them in a cool place. Then just replant them in the spring. Feed them a nitrogen rich fertilizer. Keep the soil moist, but not saturated. A good organic mulch will help.
  
  

Varieties

• Black Magic has purple/black leaves that can grow as large as 2 feet long. The plant itself can grow as tall as 6 feet and just as wide. Illustris AKA Imperial Taro has black leaves with emerald green veins. If it is planted in lightly shaded areas, the color will be an even deeper black. Jenningsii AKA colocasia affinis is a dwarf variety. Jenningsii is also called Black Caladium or Princess Taro. The leaves are charcoal colored with a silver spot in the middle and will produce tiny yellow flowers in the summer. It will only grow to as high as 2 feet. Ruffles has extra large dark green leaves with scalloping around the edges and stems that are olive green in color. Ruffles can grow as high as 6 feet and likes partial sun. Fallax is another one of the dwarf varieties and is one of the hardiest of them all. The center veil is green with a splash of silver and smaller silver veins throughout the leaf. It will take about three years, but the plant will reach 18 inches in height and 2 feet in width. Black Stem can grow as tall as 7 feet. The heart shaped leaves are olive green and shiny. In the latter part of summer, it will produce yellow flowers that have a fragrance similar to papaya. Alocasia is also known as Macrorrhiza Maki or Giant Taro. It has huge dark green leaves that grow upright on very stiff stems.
  
  

Warning

• Elephant ears can be toxic to both humans and pets. They are also invasive and can quickly take over a garden. It ids a good idea to put and edging such as bricks around the elephant ears to keep them in their place.
  
  

Insects and Disease

• Elephant ear plants and as strong as they are big and have very few problems with insects and diseases. Aphids can cause some leaf damage, but are easily taken care of with insecticides or repellents.