Alocasia princeps

Alocasia princeps is a species of flowering plant in the family Araceae. This species is a native to Borneo, Indonesia. With its V-shaped leaves it is sometimes kept as a houseplant. There are two cultivars, ‘Purple Cloak’ and ‘Candy Sticks’.

Species description

Robust to very robust herb ca. 0.8-1.8 m tall; rhizome ca. 5-10 cm diam.; leaves ca. 4 together; petioles suberect, to ca. 1.6 m long, sheathing in the lower 1/4-1/3, smooth to shghtly rough but not scabrid, dark brownish green, very faintly mottled with an obhque wavy pattern, paler distally, varying to thickly and densely, haphazardly marked with longitudinally aligned purplebrown lines and dots, occasionally with few scattered slightly raised circular glands ca. 2 mm diam.

Blade to ca. 55 cm long, leathery but not subsucculent, dark green and shining at least when young, paler and sometimes more or less faintly flushed purple beneath, hastato-sagittate, triangular to narrowly triangular in outline, the margin entire to slightly sinuate and undulate; anterior lobe widest at base; anterior costa with 3(-5) primary lateral veins on each side diverging at ca. 60°, often purple-tinged, with conspicuous axillary glands; secondary venation flush on both surfaces, fine and usually purple-tinged, not or hardly forming interprimary collective veins; posterior lobes subequalling the anterior, narrowly lanceolate to ovate; posterior costae diverging at ca. 90°.

Inflorescence

Inflorescences several (ca. 6) to numerous together, subtended by somewhat leathery marcescent green to pinkish or chocolate brown cataphylls marked similarly to the petioles; spathe white to yellowish ivory, ca. 11 cm long, constricted at ca. 3 cm; lower spathe ovoid, somewhat to densely spotted purple; limb oblong lanceolate, usually with purple margins, occasionally pink-tinged to bright purple throughout, reflexed and rolled back, the tip acuminate for 1-2 cm; spadix ivory throughout or the female zone very pale green, distal parts sometimes suffused rose, very shortly stipitate for ca. 2 mm, ca. 8 cm long.

Female zone ca. 1.5 cm long, subcylindric, ca. 1 cm diam.; ovaries subglobose, ca. 1.5 mm diam.; style ca. 0.5 mm, slender; stigma mostly bi-lobed, yellowing in spirit; interstice ca. 5 mm long, shghtly attenuate, ca. 4 mm diam.; synandrodia lax and ca. 1 mm diam. in the lower 2 mm, the remainder 2-3 dense whorls of more or less rhombohexagonal synandrodia; male zone ca. 2 cm long, 1/2 within the lower spathe chamber, subcylindric, somewhat constricted level with the spathe constriction, ca. 5 mm diam.; synandria rhombohexagonal, ca. 1-2 mm diam. (larger in the lower part of the zone), ivory; appendix 3.5-4 cm long, slightly narrower than the male zone, 4-5 mm diam., tapering gradually to a point, ivory to flushed pink; fruiting peduncle to ca. 20 cm long; fruiting spathe broadly ovoid, ca. 3-4 cm diam, white, sometimes spotted purple.

VARIEGATED FORMS:MOTTLED

ETYMOLOGY: Named after the Latin princeps word meaning “first in time or order; the first, foremost, chief, the most eminent, distinguished, or noble; the first man, first person”

CULTIVARS: Alocasia princeps ‘Candy Sticks’,Alocasia princeps ‘Purple Cloak’

HYBRIDS:Alocasia ‘Sumo’

Buying Alocasia princeps from us

Welcome to Javaniska Elflora’s website. Our stock contains seeds, plant and tubers in various size, offset tubers or bulbs. We sometimes offer our mother plants in the shop section.

If you have questions or need further information about the species, tips on planting, complains on shipment, please contact us directly to our email javaniska.elflora@gmail.com or contact our whatsapp admin for fast response. Thank you all.

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