WOW, love that Chicago Harlequin, got to find me one of those.
Who's got the biggest?
Kelly, badseed, Linda,
I got my first start for CH at the San Antonio TX Botanical Garden greenhouse, about 4-5 years ago. It was about 3" tall then. I don't feed it because it will lose it's variegation. It gives off pups and I remove them twice a year. The first go around pups are gone, at the last Round up here on July 22nd. The second set it not big enough to remove yet. It will be spring before they are ready, because I don't feed them they grow slowly. The leaves in the above photo are this years flush. I have considered giving them Maxi crop, a seaweed based fertilizer to see if I can get them growing a little faster and bigger without losing the color. I will have to try that product on one of the pups.
When I pull the pups I save the most unusual one for myself and give the rest away, even the mother plant. I have limited space for plants in pots and CH has to be kept in a pot, even here. I have tried them in the ground and they always perish in the winter. I planted one in a garden that I work on, last summer and it disappeared last Dec. I thought it was gone until I was weeding the area I had put it in and discovered that it had survived. This is a photo of what was left of a 4' plant, and it has taken until now (July) to grow. The plant is about 6" tall, but, one of the shoots is solid white, that is a keeper.
Had I seen it anywhere else, I would have sworn it was a variegated Alo mac! Does it still have the striped stems like CH?
Are you sure that is 'Chicago Harlequin'? Doesn't look like any I've seen on the web. It's a beaut whether it is or not.
Here are some images from google search on CH.
http://images.google.com/images?svnum=10&hl=en&lr=&safe=off&q=Chicago+Harlequin+colocasia
The plant your have labled Chicago Harlequin is not correct it is Alocasia macrorrhiza variegata.
Here is a photo of colocasia Chicago Harlequin.
Their are light blotches of light green in the leaves what I like most about it is its stems.
They both are beautiful, but I would love the first one, Amacro variegata.
I stand corrected. The plant was mislabeled.
This message was edited Aug 7, 2006 7:38 PM
This thread, and all the pictures has inspired me to write a filk in honor of Brian and his large Elephant Ears:
Big Aroids (with apologies to AC/DC):
Well I'm in Mid-Atlantic Gardening society,
God's gift to Colocasia variety,
I always fill my gardens
(The plants are never small)
The garden magazines say I've got
The biggest aroids of all
Oh I've got big aroids
I've got big aroids
And they're such big aroids
Leafy big aroids
And he's got big aroids
And she's got big aroids
But we've got the biggest aroids of them all
And my plants are always growing
My gardens always full
And the plants bloom and bloom again
If my aroid is in the display bed
you won't find one growing higher
Everybody says I've got
AROIDS UP TO THE TELEPHONE WIRE
Oh I've got big aroids
(repeat)
Some aroids are grown for market
And some for public dispay
But when they're grown for sheer size
They're ariods that are grown my way!
My aroids are always growing
giant leaves to the left and right
It's my belief that my big aroids
Should be planted every night
Oh I've got big aroids
(repeat)
And I'm just itching to sell you some of them
Oh we've got such wonderful variety!
Pink China, Black Magic, gigantea...
Ariod grower
Well I'm not sure that many here know this one.
To my mind it is the most beautiful Alocasia of the bunch.
Here's a size shot.
While this 'may' look a bit tiny for this contest Alocasia cuprea is one of the smaller Aroids outside a terrarium only environment.
Ric
Flower is a bit understated though.....lol
Ric
I have a few, they're not that large but I love the new leaves.
I think they look like enameled copper sculptures when young.
Beautiful shot!
Ric
Henryr your plant looks beautiful. I have to agree it is one of the most beautiful froms of Alocasia their is a new species called Alocasia infernalis which is very beautiful also. It should be more availible in the near future here.
Here is the pic of cuprea I have out of Missouri botanical gardens.
I truely enjoyed the song by Hikaro_Takayama Thank you I am not sure if mine are the biggest LOL but I am trying.
As for more on the cuprea henry Alistar Hayes the leading botanist on Alocasia in Australia did a slide show at the aroid show in Miami a few years ago he had a picture of a Gigantic cuprea form with leaves around 3 feet long and deep purple. This pic is a from that Atlanta botanical gardens has it is not as pretty as the other form but seems to get larger than most has a bit more dull look to it. Their seem to be a variety of forms of cuprea but most are very hard to find besides the TC form.
Last beautiful picture for you guys on this one.
That is so beautiful, it hardly looks real.
Are these grown mostly in shade?
Hap
I start my recently removed pups out in a terrarium as they seem to need much more humidity than the adults.
Then it is pure heavy dappled shade outside.
I grow them in leaf compost and shredded orchid bark mix..
They also like and stand far less water than most Colocasia.
Down there I'd say much like a Staghorn Fern in culture Hap.
Ric
Thanks. Deep shade for you would mean I would have to grow them in a closet!! LOL
LOL!!
Good one Hap
LOL!
Only if it's an interior wall closet and then seal the door frame.
Ric
That's right. You got it, Ric...
I won't be entering in this contest cause with all the heat and lack of rain my EE's just aren't doing to good. Here is a collage I made of the different stages of growth. Starting out with just bringing them out of the GH to planting them and then a picture of todays growth.
Linda
I did feed my Alocasia macrorrhiza variegata some Maxi-Crop Sea Weed and some Fish Emol. last week. Doesn't seem to have hurt it any so far. To soon to tell about making it grow a little faster. The only reason I did it was I thought it needed something with all the lousy weather we have been having.
I need to take a walk around and give everything a hand full of fert or epsom salt.
2pugs-
Just curious... how big is that clump?
Being from Z6a like you, it seems pretty impressive to me!
Hope the sea weed and fish emulsion give it a lift! A little rain would be wonderful too.
ROX
I know they are not the biggest, but this is my first year. We are amazed everyday how big they are getting. Thank you for letting me share.
ghia_girl yours do look very impressive to me. Especially with the heat we have been having. But Wichita has gotten more rain this summer then we have 6 miles east of Winfield. I know Winfield will get a light shower and we get what the little boy with shooting his arrow in the sky. NOTHING. The other day my DH called from work and asked we were getting any rain, because it was raining in town (only about 1/10 of a inch), and I had to tell him we didn't get a drop.
But like I said your looks wonderful, you are doing a great job with them.
Wow, Linda that looks great and yours also, Ghia.
http://www.angelfire.com/ky2/bwilliams/
This is the site that says Temporarily Down.
Edit to say I posted this on the wrong forum. Oh well
This message was edited Aug 10, 2006 3:29 PM
ghia, they look beautiful. elephant ears and caladiums are great combo! thanks for sharing.
I love all the beautiful pics of the nice large EE's. I would probably get the prize for smallest though. My EE's leaves are smaller than the tubber(sp?) They were great two years ago, but we have just been to dry this year.
This message was edited Aug 11, 2006 2:47 PM
Gosh, I'm loving all the pics, here, Dale I love the variegated (which ever it its)... I want one, now. So, Brian, how long is this contest running? Rox! Offering up pups for zone 6 & 7..... what about me? I'm in 5b Maybe zones 6, 7 and Bonnie? lol
Bonnie-
I will amend it to zone 7 and lower!
One category for colocasia and one for alocasia.
ROX
Thx Rox- latest measurement - 3 1/2ft- Col.Thai Giant
Bonnie-
That's huge!
ROX
It's one of the older leaves, not too pretty, but I'm hoping for at least that size or larger and pretty at the same time.
I don't guess I'll be winning any contests this year but I did finally get a pic of my one tropical bed this year. Most of the ears are in 4-5 foot tall range. I have not had time to measure single leaves.
The back side.
