Last summer I picked up a Xanthosoma Robusta plant for my parents' garden. This aroid plant is also known as an elephant ear, similar to Alocasias and Colocasias (which are prominent in my garden). A few months later the eigh inch tall plant seemed to have vanished from it's spot in their garden. I'm not sure what happened but since they live a few miles from the Pacific Ocean I guess the cooler autumn air caused it to go dormant and die back to soil level. This seemed to be the case because this past weekend, I checked the spot where it had been and discovered four new baby Xanthosomas. My folks generously allowed me to snag a few for my garden. Here's a photo of one of them:
Although my petite apartment jungle garden is way beyond capacity, I figure I can make room for a few more fascinating plants. I mean, how much 'damage' can two little Xanthosoma's do?
And the answer to my last question: A LOT! Xanthosomas, much like many elephant ear plants, stays true to its namesake, and grows monstrously huge leaves in a very short amount of time. The one in this photo could well be less than a year or two old! Well, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't aware of this before getting the plants (I already have dozens of elephant ears so I should know better), but I couldn't resist. As for how to deal with these giant plants in my compact garden, well, I'll cross that path when I get to it. In the meantime, I can't wait to see the huge leaves!
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