Elephant ears ( Colocasia esculenta ) are big , splashy , tropical plant life with leaves measuring 3 to 5 foot in length , change in colour from green , dark purpleness , and variegated green and white . Elephant ear wo n’t tolerate cold winters . If you require your elephant ear flora to live another year to imprint visitors to your garden , dig the elephant ear plant and bring the bulbs indoors for the wintertime months .

Step 1

Dig the elephant ear lightbulb in fall , using a garden forking , after the first icing of the time of year wilts the leave . utilise garden shears to cut the parting to no more than 2 to 4 inches . Remove excess soil from the bulbs and put the bulbs in a cool , dry place for 24 hour .

Step 2

Place the elephant ear bulb in a composition board box fulfill with peat moss , bark mulch or sawdust . Store the corner in a service department or basement where the temperature will be between 40 and 45 arcdegree Fahrenheit . Do n’t allow the elephant ear bulb to freeze .

Step 3

look into the elephant ear bulbs every month . Discard any bulbs that are soft or rotten . Mist shriveled bulb with a small amount of pee , and yield them to the box .

Step 4

Replant elephant ear light bulb after the last frost of the season . opt a place where the works will be exposed to dawning sunlight but protect from the rays of the good afternoon sun . Dig a hole for each bulb , and tally a minuscule handful of bone meal to the bottom of the hole . embed the elephant ear bulb , then water the area deeply .

Care For Giant Elephant Ears In Winter

The charge and exploit it assume to overwinter elephant ear ( Colocasia spp . ) , The filth can dry out out entirely during the dormant period , but natural rain will likely keep the soil moist . contract back dead foliageand stalks as they die 2 to 4 inches from the soil line . you may cut out idle parting any fourth dimension of yr . While elephant spike flora survive winters in frost - prone areas , specifically within USDA zones 8 through 9 , the foliation will die back after a hoarfrost or cold spell . Once the first Robert Lee Frost kills the leafage , thin back the stalks 2 to 4 inches from the grease line , then cover up the land with a layer of mulch 4 inches deep . No extra water is necessary during the dormant period . Discontinue watering through the winter . In the spring when the temperature is consistently at or above 60 degree F , water when the top of the soil experience ironic . Elephant ears have fleshy tubers for roots .

Things Needed

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