Alocasia reginula

Alocasia reginula, almost always sold under its trade name 'Black Velvet', is one of the smallest and most distinctive jewel Alocasia species: a dwarf rosette of near-black, matte-velvety leaves with pale silvery-green venation. Its compact size, staying well under 30cm, makes it one of the more apartment-friendly jewel Alocasias, though it shares the group's demand for high humidity. The 'Pink Albo Variegata' form layers unstable pink and cream-white sectoring over this same near-black baseline, making it considerably more fragile and expensive than the plain species.

Native range

Borneo (humid tropical understory)

Classification

Genus

Alocasia

Family

Araceae

Type

Wild

Growth habit

Dwarf, clumping, upright

Morphology

Leaf shape

Broadly ovateEgg-shaped leaves, with the wider end near the base., shield-like

Leaf length

10-15 cm

Leaf width

7-11 cm

Petiole colour

Short, dark green-purple

Venation

Pale silvery-green veins against a near-black blade

Texture

Matte velvety

Variegation

N/A: solid near-black velvety leaf; the pink- and cream-sectored 'Pink AlboVariegation featuring stark white patches or sectors, which completely lack chlorophyll. Variegata' is a chimericVariegation caused by a cell mutation. Often produces high contrast but can be unstable and revert to all-green. sport derived from this species baseline

Growth habit

Dwarf upright clumping