You've found the famous Dave's Garden website! Join this friendly global community that shares tips and ideas for home and gardens, along with seeds and plants!
Check out the DG homepage for a brief overview of what you'll find in this gardening mega-site.
Login
If you don't have an account yet, visit the registration page to sign up.
Many lovers of tropical plants are smitten with the very large leaved Alocasia species, and many of them lust after a plant as large as Alocasia robusta is reputed to grow. One result I have been seeking in my breeding work, a holy grail of sorts, is a giant-leaved Alocasia that is easy to grow for all. Here I'll share about what I've come up with so far . . .
That was Then, and This is Now
In a previous article on Alocasia robusta, I mentioned that I had succeeded in producing hybrids between the hardy Alocasia odora and the very finicky Alocasia robusta. I gave the name, Alocasia x robudora to the group of seedlings I obtained from the cross. That was in early February 2008, and since then I have grown the little seedlings up to size. A few have matured to rather ponderous dimensions, and so I can now report that I have, not just one or two, but at least a dozen candidates for the title of super-sized Alocasia. So far, almost all of them are as easy to grow as A. odora. In addition, these plants produce what could be the most spectacularly colored inflorescences of any Alocasia I have grown. With blooms ranging in color from dark purple to a lighter purple outside and bright pink inside, and up to six inches long, they may represent the potential for these plants becoming the first Alocasia to be grown for the blooms as well as the leaves (see photo below, left).
Even while the little seedlings were just beginning to grow, my large A. robusta, the one that was flattened by last winter's cold snap (see thumbnail photo above, right), went on to produce a cluster of blooms in Spring before an untimely demise. Through the fog of pollen dust, I produced a second wave of A. robusta hybrids, this time using an Alocasia x calidora F2 selection with unusual bullate or puckered leaves as the ovule parent. The seedlings from that cross are now large enough that I know for a certainty that they are indeed hybrid progeny and not a disappointing A. odora selfing.
How much Mo' will they Gro'?
Since this is the first full year I've been growing these plants, I've yet to see the maximum size they will be able to attain. I do know that when I've succeeded in blooming a Robusta, the plant was not as large as some of these have been when they first bloomed. The ultimate size of a Robusta is legendary, so if the size my seedlings have already attained is any indication, I should have some giants to show for my work. Meanwhile, the work continues because, as anyone who hybridizes knows, the most diversity comes in the F2 generation, not the F1. If you can imagine it, even larger plants could result if a successful F2 generation is produced from these F1 plants. That's one reason why these plants are not ready for release; they are a work in progress.
Meanwhile, I can't just sit on my pollen brushes, especially when at least two of my Robudoras are producing pollen! So I've gone and crossed the Robudora with the Imperial Giant. If successful, this cross will result in a rare and complex 4 way hybrid, the parents of which are all large to huge growers (A. macrorrhizos 'Borneo Giant', A. 'VangiGo., A. odora, and A. robusta). So far, it looks like I might end up with just a few seeds, but even one viable seed from such a cross would be remarkable. My hope is that next year I'll be writing about, and showing pictures of, the next generation of truly huge and hardy Alocasia hybrids.
Oh, did I mention that one of my huge Alocasia x portora plants has thrown a pile of pollen? Any suggestions on what I should do?
LariAnn has been gardening and working with plants since her teenage years growing up in Maryland. Her intense interest in plants led her to college at the University of Florida, where she obtained her Bachelor's degree in Botany and Master of Agriculture in Plant Physiology. In the late 1970s she began hybridizing Alocasias, and that work has expanded to Philodendrons, Anthuriums, and Caladiums as well. She lives in south Florida with her partner and son and is research director at Aroidia Research, her privately funded organization devoted to the study and breeding of new, hardier, and more interesting aroid plants.
Posted by flowerfantasy (from Washington, IN) on June 21, 2009 at 02:16 PM:
I don't know if you can do that with all pollen but I have heard of people doing that.
...
Posted by LariAnn (from Miami, FL) on June 21, 2009 at 02:29 PM:
I have kept Alocasia pollen refirgerated over silica gel and it remains viable for a week or two. I've read that at cryogenic temperatures, such as in liquid nitrogen, pollen can be kept for a year or more. I've not had the opportunity to try that, however.
...
Subject: Hardy EES
Posted by flowerfantasy (from Washington, IN) on January 08, 2009 at 05:11 PM:
Hey Lariann, While your at you project develope one that we northerns can put out side and not have to dig it up come winter. LOL I would love to have something that big but I wouldn't be able to keep it in the house cause it isn't big enough for it to fit in LOL Really sounds interesting though.
...
Subject: Nice
Posted by phicks (from Lakeland, FL) on January 08, 2009 at 04:00 PM:
Nice Article And Pictures Paul
...
Posted by joycet (from Franklin, OH) on January 09, 2009 at 04:32 PM:
Now those are some BIG ears!
...
Subject: So Exciting!
Posted by joycet (from Franklin, OH) on January 08, 2009 at 11:38 AM:
LariAnn..how exciting is that!? Having a couple of your babies this year and growing them out in Ohio was exciting for me. I'll be here to be your Northern grower when the time comes!
Even while the little seedlings were just beginning to grow, my large A. robusta, the one that was flattened by last winter's cold snap (see thumbnail photo above, right), went on to produce a cluster of blooms in Spring before an untimely demise. Through the fog of pollen dust, I produced a second wave of A. robusta hybrids, this time using an Alocasia x calidora F2 selection with unusual bullate or puckered leaves as the ovule parent. The seedlings from that cross are now large enough that I know for a certainty that they are indeed hybrid progeny and not a disappointing A. odora selfing.
