Is that a valid name? Was looking for it in plantfiles and couldn't, if it isn't valid, what do those little monsters fall into?
green runner?
Sorry no one has answered your question. I was waiting for someone with more experience to say something. If I had to guess I would say it is the common Green one.
Colocasia gigantea
Hmmm, I think that one is more clumping and much wider leaves. I suspect green runner just was never added to PF, but I sure as heck want to verify it's real lol
does it have a little dark spot at the top of the leaf? If so I know what your talking about, I'll have to search for the name. Mine has more narrow leaves and runs like crazy.
lol Yeah, that's it :o}
I'll take a picture of mine tonight and post it. Well, that is if the rain stays away long enough.....lol
If it wasn't so darned hot out I'd run out and get a pic, but I think you described dead on.
here's mine
close up
Hmmmm, mine are a much deeper green and the stems are not entirely green. A different one maybe? I will take a pic in the morning.
The ones I have in my pond that came from the same plant have a darker coller stem. Kind of a redesh-brown
Ah, that sounds right!
No real common name other than Elephant ear. The scientific name is Colocasia esculenta but this is for a large portion of the genus and their are many many forms. I have it listed as Colocasia esculenta (Blue Green Running form)
Thanks for popping in Brian. I did know it was esculenta.....but yes, all the different forms! I like to know what to call something to differentiate it from all the others......especially the ones in my yard. I'll borrow what you are using if that's OK :o}
Well giving plants names is a bit of a tricky thing. Either it's a species which are usually hard to get to name unless your collecting new plants in rarely uncharted areas. I know a few botanist who have named many plants from their collecting trips around the world. The other way is to either create a hybrid or find a clone or mutation and market it as the name you have given it. If it is published in a catalogue it is usually considered a true name. At least that's how the old rules I remember reading about went. Tony from plant delights nursery is very well known and good at this as I am sure he has released many clones hybrids and mutations to the market and as has given them names. Their are how ever some major problems with this technique. One I am sure many have seen is the same plant with multiple cultivars names. Not to mention some nurseries are known to rejuvenate old stock by giving them new showy names. So their are some downsides to this. Another problem is with a plant like this it has been grown for many years all over and a person has got to have a lot of pull to get a name to stick to it. Some people and places will not except your naming of the plant.
I for one like to do a lot of digging and research before I go naming a plant. Their could be old cultivars names or possibly a good name already being used for it. In the case of this Colocasia it is usually considered a weed in the south and I commonly hear it refereed to as the Common Elephant ear. The problem here is the large growing tetriploid form sold at our local Walmarts is also commonly called the Common elephant ear. I am guessing this depends if your in the south or in the North were one is more common that the other.
I for one would like to see more of these varieties with a good stuck name so we can easily tell them apart. The bad part about this is if a nursery gives these plants names like Blue runner and people buy them only to see they were what they always refereed to as the common form and they already have it growing. You can get some very unsatisfied people.
For now I have listed them as Colocasia esculenta (Blue Green Running form) and the walmart form as Colocasia esculenta (Large green common form)
I would think for these to now to get a good cultivar name it would have to be something catchy and well liked to be excepted by all. It seems these forms though often seen and grown still have never received a cultivars name.
I am currently growing 100s possibly 1000 different Colocasias and most may never recieve names.
I have named some in the past here is a list off hand of some I have named.
Colocasia Pink China
Colocasia Miranda
Colocasia Big Dipper
Colocasia milky way
Their were a few others but they never really made it to the mass market
Colocasia bloody mary
Colocasia neon (pink stem)
I have the large green one from walmart, too, and I also knew it was esculenta :( I agree there needs to be a way to distinguish them. Normally you have your species plant.....then sports and seedlings of your species plant wihich get names, right? So how could they ever get names now that they are spread over everywhere already and who names them? I would love to have a real name for them!
I do know about your work with aroids Brian, I always look for yours (and LariAnn's) answers when I'm over here, I'd love to see more of your cannas though, how's Lau coming along, and that wonderful neon green?
I will talk to Tony soon about this and will see what he thinks about getting a name on these Colocasias.
As for the cannas the form Lau seems very unstabile and I am not sure if it will ever look like it use to as it has sense reverted to one color. The neon green form I have a plant growing but I have seen virus in a few of them. I have been reluctant to cut it as much.
I know there's been discussion regarding big dipper-tea cups-coffee cups confusion, I guess it's hard for folks like myself that don't have the most trained eyes to distinguish between named plants (or commonly named)that have similar characteristics. For example, there are several red-stemmed colocasias, that look really similar to me, but have different names. What would be a difference that would make a stand-out between say, Milky Way and Elepaio?
Would love it if you could keep us updated on your talk with Tony.
Sorry to hear that about those canna Brian, very disappointing! Was looking forward to growing both.
There are some confusing colocasias.... I had always thought MW and Elepaio were the same, what is the difference?
I am thinking Big Dipper is bigger than tea/coffe cups, is that right?
The shine of the leaves is one give away. Big Digger looks velvet and Tea cups has more of a shine.
And besides they are pretty identical huh?
Here is a pic of both leaves. The one of the left big dipper the one of the right Coffee cups (tea cups). Coffee cups produces a sheen on the leaf and seems to cup up a bit more with tip almost always pointing upward. It can grow to 6 to 9 feet tall and forms runners on top of the ground.
Big dipper had a slight velevet feel to the leaves and most leaves will not cup up till over 2 to 3 feet tall. They usually grow to 5 to 6 feet and have shown to be much hardier than Coffee cups. They also send runners on top of the ground and under ground.
6-9'!!! I'll be moving that puppy, that's for sure :( that'll be way cool though. I have coffee cups and I can say for anyone in an area like mine it handles dry conditions well, by that I mean lack of humidity.
I have elepaio and black marble and both prefer humid conditions, the long dry hot summer will be issues for both of those. I put them both in spots where they should have more humidity but it isn't helping much. Coffee cups is pretty exposed and not having any issues.
Great pic and explanation Brian, thanks. Now what about elepaio and milky way? Are they the same?
They are the same Elepaio is the hawaiian name for this variety of taro Milky way was the cultivar name.
Ah, cool. Thanks Brian and everyone for you input.
Brian,
Thanks for those side by side pictures.