A member from another board graciously sent me what potentially may turn into a huge elepahnt ear plant. A vietnam variety. I had it indoors because i just loved the look of its leaves. I planted it yesterday because I want it to be an outside plant to maximize it's growth potential. My other ee had a large bulb on it. This one had roots . Very nice healthy roots. But no bulb. Does that mean this one grows from roots and no bulb or will the bulb develope later? Also ! I live in Greer South Carolina . Off the top pf my head ,i cannot remember what zone I am in. But we do get cold, an occasional bout with ice and snow. Seberal months down into the teens for temperature. How would I keep the plant protected during this time ? Cover it? Not cover it? It is in my very large pots. EE are fairly new to me. I have tried doing research but because of time restraints , doctor visits for me and mom, and retinopathy with my vision I have slowed down considerably with my reading. Any information would be greatly appreciated. Thank in advance.
What you were given might be a Vietnamese veggie called Bac Ha - Alocasia odora one of it's common names is Elephant Ears another common name is Taro Stems. It grows from a corm instead of a bulb and in this plant the stems are edible but not the corm. It's stems have to be carefully cooked before eating or it will cause digestive problems. Other Elephant Ears have edible bulbs, Taro is made from them. It can survive short durations of freezing weather if it is protected but not a long winter of them. You are zone 7a by the way.
7a...thanks for that info. So this variety of EE will not grow the large bulb?? Do you think i need to cover the pots with hay for insulation? Seems our winter is starting early. Usually my cherry tomatoes produce until november. They died off last week. Kind of unusual weather for us.
I lived in Sumter and I also had a Elephant Ear. I kept it in my house for the Winter even though it looked terrible. Spring it came to life beautifully.
Waretrop..are you still in sumpter? What is your weather like? 'I was going to keep it indoors but wasnt sure if it needed to die back for a rest.
No Look....see...I am in Pa now... It was a little warmer where I was in SC compared to where you are...... Miss it down there... that was the life....
Waretrop The weather here is wonderful just now.windows open , curtains gently dancingin the breeze.BUT the weeds!!!!! Ifyou lose control of them they overtake you like a scyfy movie. When i moved here 14 years ago i had the ,ost awesome garden. I bought a .10 cent pkg of morning glories and they climbed up the basktball hoop and were magnificenT. 14 yrs later...i am losing my mind to them. The birds have scattered them EVERYWHERE. I COILD MAKE A TARZAN VINE FROM TREE TO TREE. I was out there again today pulling the vines out. And the poke weed! I have tamed it somewhat. But i found one growing in an overgrown rosebush. That was soon taken care of. I am taking a break from weeding under the metting around my blueberry bush. Other than the weeding i absolutey love Greer SC. It is the perfect place to live. I am 5 minutes from GSP airport and BMW. Next year where the milliken plant used to be at rte 85 and rt 101 they are building a Bass Pro shop. We went to marietta sc this morning to a local farm to buy tomatoes and green peppers and sweet potatoes. Been thinking of looking for a recipe for fried green tomatoes to use up some in the box. Hope your day is as nice as it is here.
