Overwintering Elephant Ears (Colocasia) Question??

10 years ago

Hello :) I live in the Hunter Valley, NSW and it's starting to get a little chilly here. I have a bunch of elephant ears growing in large plastic pots which are sitting in buckets of water to mimic a pond. The only variety I am really sure of is Black Magic, apart from that I have two green variety's that I don't know the name of.
I've seen dozens of ways people overwinter elephant ears, any thoughts on the best one for Australia? I don't have a greenhouse (I may be able to obtain a small one before winter hits) or any grow light set up unfortunately. Obviously I should remove them from the buckets of water to stop rot... then what? Leave the bulbs in the soil? Remove them and dry them out? Bring them inside or leave them outside? How much water, ect, ect.
I spoke to a lady the other day who grows them in the ground, she said she just forgets about them in the winter and they come back?
As you can see I'm a little confused, lol.

Comments (4)

oldnod
10 years ago
Hi Shutterbug, I am well out of your area and we don't see frosts anymore so I can just give general comments.

To assist our potted plants during winter we move them up against the house to retain a warmer atmosphere. Sun reflection, less breeze etc.

You should consider which side is the most favourable for the protection you require.

Nod
edleigh7
9 years ago
I am in Brissy so sub tropical, but i agree with the above, maybe move them closer to the house or under some eaves or even some shade cloth
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Hostaholic2, I put Black Magic in my south facing patio doorway. It can get very hot there and the winter sun can burn plants. I found that putting my large cacti pots in the front row right next to the door worked best, with the other things behind them. Saved me having to climb over things to get to the verticals and pull them partially shut on really sunny days! As for the water, I could never make up my mind. Black Magic can take a lot of water, even indoors in the winter. I based the amount I gave it on whether it was putting out a lot of leaves or not. BTW, I did find that my Alocasia Polly really just liked to go dormant. So I keep it over winter in the corner of the kitchen with Clivia miniata and don't water it at all until early spring.
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I think I will put the pot outside tomorrow then. Since I am at least if not 2 behind you. And I do think I will put one of the bulbs in the ground. I think it will look really kewl in the spot I have open. Thanks Jenny P
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I need help here. I have had to overwinter my huge (potted)Eleana EE as a house plant because when I went and got one of them out of it's pot, there was no bulb. Only a mass of roots. So the other that I didn't kill goes into the house each winter. I have a huge potted violet stem EE and a huge potted Illustris, as well as 2 Eleana's and a Nancy's Revenge. I want to store them all dormant, but I'm afraid I'll find no bulb to store. I can't find any video on line that shows anyone getting a HUGE EE out of it's tub, and cleaning the mass down to a bulb. The videos that show these little plants aren't a help to me. Does Illustris and the Violet (or black stem) EE have any bulb to store??
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raci57045
9 years ago
I live in the foothills of western North Carolina (Zone 7) and planted an elephant ear plant last year and did great all spring and summer. When the leaves died back, I cut them back and covered it over with mulch. So far, nothing's emerged. Should I be concerned? Here it is April 10th; or do you think it'll start to send out leaves later on?
tropicbreezent
9 years ago
I understand a lot of people do cover them in a thick layer of mulch, but I also think you need to keep rain or water out. Also, one thing about mulch, it slows the cold getting in but also slows the penetration of warmth. If it's warm enough and in the sun you might find pulling away mulch will help the heat penetrate faster.

Overwintering Elephant Ears (Colocasia) Question??

Comments (4)

oldnod

edleigh7

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