Elephant Ear Plant, Want to buy an Elephant Ear plant, Elephant Ear species, Alocasia odora (Roxb.) K. Koch, Alocasia odora, Exotic Rainforest rare tropical plants

So you're Looking for an
"Elephant Ear" Plant??

Alocasia odora, Copyright 2007m Steve Lucas, www.ExoticRainforest.com

I often have people do a search on the internet using the term "Elephant Ear" and as a result end up on one of my pages. But this website has more than 350 pages! Most of the time they become aggravated because they can't immediately find the plant they are seeking, and there is a reason. Which plant do you want to know about? And what genus is that plant found in? Many of you likely believe the term "Elephant Ear" is a good way to describe large plants you want to grow in your yard, but sorry, I don't. And here is the reason why the term "Elephant Ear" is a near useless common name.

Philodendron maximum, Copyright Steve Lucas, www.ExoticRainforest.com

Are you aware there are plant species in quite a few different scientific genera that have managed to garner the common name Elephant Ear"? Species in the genera Alocasia, Xanthosoma, Philodendron, Anthurium, Caladium, Monstera and Colocasia are often called "Elephant Ear" plants. So when you try to look up that term, which plant do you mean? Which one do you want to buy or learn about?

If you do a search of a scientific source you will learn those seven genera contain between 3,000 and 4,000 species! So which one of those 3,000 to 4,000 very different plants are you trying to find? You see, "Elephant Ear" is not a very descriptive term, or a good choice as a common name. If you were to describe your car as a "Chevy" everyone would think you were talking about a Chevrolet. Certainly, that doesn't describe the model, but al least you would be in the correct "genus". But if you drive a Mercedes you'd likely be unhappy if someone called it a "Chevy". The term "Elephant Ear" is the same and doesn't even tack the plant you are seeking to a genus! And that makes finding the species very difficult. Are you aware there are at least 800 species of Anthurium? How about 1000 species of Philodendron?

I know, you are probably seeking a plant with big leaves. OK, which one? There are Anthurium as well as Alocasia species with leaves up to 12 feet (almost 4 meters) long! There are species in the genera Philodendron and Xanthosoma with leaves up to 6 feet (nearly 2 meters) in length but also species that are quite small. There are species in the genus Colocasia and Monstera with leaves that approach 4 feet (1.2 meters) along with species that are very little. And there are plants in the genus Caladium with moderately large and others with very small leaves. You see, the size of the leaf has nothing to do with the genus. So just saying "Elephant Ear" means nothing. Regrettably, nursery sales people use it all the time and despite attempts to get them to stop, the name persists!

So if you are looking for something to grow that resembles the general shape of an elephant's ear, perhaps you'll find it in our list of Alocasia, Xanthosoma, Philodendron, Anthurium, Monstera, Caladium or Colocasia species. Every plant in those 7 genera are members of the family Araceae, the aroids:

http://www.exoticrainforest.com/plantscollection.html

As a term for plants, "Elephant Ear" is very non-descriptive. There are just too many options! But here's a hint. The one in the photo at the top of the page is Alocasia odora. The only true "species" that qualify as elephant ears also have four legs and a trunk. As a name for plants, it has little descriptive value.

Here are related pages with more detailed plant descriptions and photos that just might be what you are seeking:

Colocasia esculenta

Xanthosoma sagittifolium

Alocasia odora

I hope you find the one you want!

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