Hello,
I read somewhere that you could use some varieties of Elephant Ears in water garden's, this is new to me. I've grown them for a long time only in dirt. Looks like the water would make the bulb rot!! Has anyone tried this yet!!!
The one's I saw in the picture were the purple stem Taro, the article also said to leave them in standing water and they would put on lot's of babies. Someone please come to my rescue before I do a no no. and put them in!!!!!!!
Thanks
Elephant Ears and water?
I dont have a pond- but i do have an old aquarium outside that has about 2-3 inches of water in it, which i have my ee's potted in dirt sitting in. they seem to like it-- but i'm far from an expert on the subject. i read that they love water, so instead of me forgetting to water them, this is how i do it. hope someone with a pond can help you more!
I put mine in our ponds. They love wet areas apparently. :D
Badseed gave me a very good hint.
You can keep Colocasias and Xanthosomas in water safely. But keep Alocasias on dry land.
I have elephant ears around my pond, on top of my waterflall, and in my pond. I even have one that is bare root in the pond and doing well.
rylaff,
Which ones do you have in the water(names)?
My colocasias are inside the pond. One is even bare root in the bottom. I also have black magic taro in the pond. The colocasias are also in my bog areas. My xanthasomas are in the ground and grow to be about 7 feet tall.
I was at Lowes looking for plants and to my surprise they had a few pond plants, including Black Magic Taro which was submerged along with all the other water loving plants. I bought it and a lizard tail.
Badseed's advice is pretty accurate.
We raise all our EE's in containers except a few bulbed Colocasia.
We do ALL C's. ( green, violet, red and black stem) in water. This ranges from full submersion to sitting in a 1" saucer. Give them as much sun as possible.
The Xanthes and 'Pocket' EE's though are a little trickier and should be done on a species or cultivar basis.
We lost 'Mickey Mouse' due to too much water.
Some like 'Illustrus', 'Black Magic' and 'Black Runner' seem to REALLY thrive in full submersion.
Make sure you cut back on the water gradually though toward Fall.
We winter them indoors in heated water under lights and they are thriving.
If you can't do that let them go dormant or treat them as house plants and only water occasionally.
If you are not looking for a special variety, you can get taro root at some grocery stores in the produce section. I got four of them at Super K a couple of weeks ago for two bucks. All four have sprouted. Also, Walmart had the Grapefruit sized EE bulbs the other day for only $2.50 each.
I have been going to Lowes every couple of days and they still do not have their water plants in. I can't wait. I'll have to watch for the black taro.
I grow several taro varieties in water--including Elephant Ear--If your pond is not real large the Taro from the Grocery Store will not get as large-as EE--but are just as beautiful,and edible also--and clump better for propagation, or control of propagation--as the side shoots are easy to remove in the fall-to store for next years planting or to eat.Malanga will also grow at the waters edge, or near it--also available at grocery stores.Malanga is almost as large as EE but not quite. at 7 foot tall--But very atractive.
Does anyone put fertilizer in the EE's when in water?
Violabird: Last year I did. I used the same as you would for a waterlily. Either tomato spikes or the tree spikes. The tomato spikes were small enough to put in the soil. The tree spikes, I pounded up with a hammer and used about an inch piece in each container. I poked them down about 2 in. into the soil. Much cheaper than the pond tablets fertilizer.
Thanks Debbie!