Scroll to explore forms of Alocasia macrorrhizos
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Alocasia macrorrhizos
Giant Taro
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Alocasia macrorrhizos Morphology
About Alocasia macrorrhizos
Alocasia macrorrhizos, the Giant Taro, is one of the largest and most widely grown aroids in cultivation: an enormous, solid deep-green, arrow-shaped-leaved plant that can reach several metres tall outdoors in the tropics, where its starchy corm has been cultivated as a food source for centuries. Indoors it stays considerably more modest but is still an imposing statement plant with immense, glossy, undivided leaves on thick upright petioles. Its size and vigour have made it a popular parent for ornamental selections, most notably the cream-marbled 'Variegated' form and the ivory-white-flushed 'Ivory Coast' cultivar, both of which are considerably slower, more delicate, and more expensive than the fast-growing, tolerant, and inexpensive plain green species.
Market Analysis
Alocasia macrorrhizos Price Guide & Auction Value
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Before You Buy
Species-specific things to check when evaluating a listing
- The plain green species is inexpensive and widely available, so be wary of inflated prices for unnamed 'giant Alocasia' listings
- For 'Ivory Coast' or 'Variegated' forms, confirm the variegation pattern in photos matches the named form, as labelling is inconsistent in this group
- Check the corm/root ball is firm; this species is generally rot-resistant but still vulnerable in waterlogged substrate
- Factor in eventual size; this is one of the largest commonly available Alocasia species and will outgrow a small pot within a year or two
Propagation Guide
How to Propagate Alocasia macrorrhizos
2-3 months
Cultivar character is preserved through vegetative cuttings
Mature plants readily produce basal offsets that can be divided once independently rooted. The plain species propagates vigorously and reliably; the variegated and Ivory Coast forms are markedly slower and more prone to reverting or stalling if divided too early.
Care Guide
Alocasia macrorrhizos Care Guide & Growing Conditions
Rich, well-draining mix: 40% potting compost, 30% orchid bark, 20% perlite, 10% horticultural charcoal. Tolerant of denser mixes than most Alocasia given its vigour.
Water thoroughly when the top few centimetres of substrate dry out. This species is thirstier and more forgiving of consistent moisture than most jewel Alocasias; avoid letting it dry out completely for long.
50-70% for lush growth, though it tolerates average household humidity better than most Alocasia species.
Balanced liquid fertiliser at full strength every 2-3 weeks during the growing season; this is a hungry, fast-growing plant.
Annually while young, given its rapid growth rate; every 2 years once mature and sized to its final container.
Common Problems
Yellowing lower leaves
Natural leaf turnover as the plant grows, older leaves are shed as new ones emerge
Remove spent leaves at the base; only investigate further if multiple leaves yellow at once
Reversion to green on variegated forms
Insufficient light causing the plant to favour chlorophyll-rich green tissue
Increase light levels and prune reverted all-green growth points to encourage variegated growth to dominate
Spider mites
Dry indoor air, especially over winter
Increase humidity and treat with insecticidal soap or neem oil at first sign of stippling
A Food Crop Turned Houseplant
Long before macrorrhizos became a houseplant, its starchy corm was a cultivated food source across Southeast Asia and the Pacific. The sheer size and vigour that make it a good staple crop are the same traits that make it a fast, forgiving, inexpensive plant in cultivation now. That vigour is also what makes the 'Variegated' and 'Ivory Coast' selections bred from it so much more expensive: both are markedly slower and more delicate than the plain green species, trading fast growth for ornamental colour. If you want a big, easy Alocasia rather than a fussy collector's piece, the plain species is the one to look for.
Also in: Giant Tree Forms
Large-leaved species that develop trunks over time and can exceed 2m indoors given the space.
