Elephant ears watering practices question

Hi all. I haven't tried growing EEs in a long time so this past spring I bought and planted one in a pot, I used Miracle grow soil and fertilized it regularly. Now that it's time to dig them up here to move inside for the winter I unpotted it and found the main bulb rotted away but the offshoots are fine. I assume that I may have overwatered it, it spent the summer under my covered back patio deck. It grew just fine. Well, the offshoots anyway. I have most of them outside drying but put one offshoot in a clay pot and brought it in to try to grow it overwinter for fun.

Could I have overwatered this? Drainage didn't seem to be a problem but next spring I'm going to add lots of extra perlite to the mix to be safe.

Opinions welcomed and thanks!

Tom

Tom-
Is it an Alocasia or Colocasia or Xanthosoma?
All three are referred to as EE, put have different preferences for watering.

But all are susceptible to overwatering, especially when they are just starting their growth phase before it really warms up and the plant starts growing.

During the winter, Promix seems to work really well for me, as it drains well. EE can be susceptible to spider mite issues, so mist the leaves regularly. Re: watering I would recommend keeping the soil moist but not wet. If you know the type of EE or can post an image, I can give you better info. The Aroid forum is also fantastic for getting input re: EEs.

In the Summer I like to grow the EEs in the ground and seldom have issues with rot. Once they start to grow though, many EE like the plain green EE and violet stem can be grown as marginal pond plants.

I wonder if the pups survived w/o rot because their roots weren't as deep in the pot as the main tuber. I have heard that people who grow large EE in pots like to fill the bottom (~3") with broken styrofoam pieces to allow really good drainage and keep the pots lighter.

Hope this is helpful.
ROX

Hi Rox and thanks for replying. Not sure the type, probably the one sold at most garden centers, I.E. your typical EE. The pups were about the same depth. I may have overwatered but heard that most EEs love the water. I normally use and love Pro-mix myself but used Miracle grow this time. I also usually use an equal part of perlite for drainage but didn't this time.

Right now I have the offshoots drying out then will place in a brown bag in the cool attic over winter, sound right to you?

Thanks again for the help!

Tom