Hi, I grew two of the Elephant ears last summer in 10 gallon tubs with no
problem. I would say, if I remember right, the pointy end should face up.
The squared off end probaby is the top. I saved one of the bulbs and had to
cut off the stem of leaves which left a flat squared off end. If you let it
die off slowely, I would guess there would be a point end.
Well that's the problem, the other "end" opposite the squared-off end isn't
pointy at all, it's perfectly rounded. All the bulbs I have are either just
about perfectly round spheres, or egg-shaped, with one end somewhat squared off
so it will stand on a flat surface.
That's why I'm inclined to think that the flattened or squared--off end is
where the leaves were once cut off. But I'm not sure, and since these bulbs are
planted shallow with only 3" of cover for a 8-10" diameter bulb, I think
planting them sideways isn't going to yield good results.
Live in Michigan,
so the cold weather came on pretty fast last fall. Brought the tubs into the
garage but was afraid they would freeze - SO...CHOP I went and then dug up
the bulb up to store it in the basement. There roots will fill any
container you plant them in and will be larger ( 6 to 9 feet tall and wide)
when allowed to grow in large tubs. I had grown one in a 2 gallon pot all
summer a few years ago............ never got taller than 2 feet. They are
very tropical looking and sure add interest to a small back patio garden
area I have.
Good Luck,
Dan
Thanks Dan. When you 1st purchased these bulbs, were they already growing?
"TakeThisOut" wrote in message
...
Make sure you WANT THEM. They have a tendency to take off and encroach
where you don't want them. Would suggest a pot for each.
Oh yes, I want them allright - they look like a fun plant and I have a LOT
of
garden to fill this year after killin off a large patch of lawn I felt was
useless.
I could definately plant them inside pots and bury the pots as well. The
area
is very fertile as I regraded it and dumped a lot of my compost there and
added
bagged manure and topsoil in the fall.
It gets sun in the morning and shade from about 11am-2pm then sun again
until
it sinks below a 6' stockade fence.
Water no problem as well.
So how about it? Which end is up? If I have to I'll put them all in a pot
of
soil and water until they've sprouted enough for me to tell.
TakeThisOut wrote:
I just picked up 6 Elephant Ears bulbs (tubers?) They're as big as
cantelopes.
According to the package, I can plant them indoors now (4-6 weeks
before
the
outdoor growing season begins) I have 6 huge 10 gallon post and the
rich
soil
mix ready to go, but 1 problem... I can't tell which way the bulb is
"up".
These bulbs are very clean and dirt-free and have no root or old stem
remanents
on it.
On each bulb, one end appears to have been cut cleanly with a knife as
it's
kind of squared off so the bulb will sit on a flat surface. And all
over
the
opposite side of the sphere there seem to be round discolorations of
varying
diameters, so I figure the squared off end is the root, and the other
end
is
the stems. Correct?
I Did a google search on these and there have been lots of posts on
this
board
regarding elephant ears, but not this issue.
TIA
Now - 52 degrees and raining in Long Island NY
Tomorrow - 31 and snow 2-4"
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TAKETHISOUT budysbackagain(@)THAT TOO a-oh-ell dot com
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TAKETHISOUT budysbackagain(@)THAT TOO a-oh-ell dot com
Subject: Elephant Ears
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From: "Frog Dan"
Newsgroups: rec.gardens
Date: Thu, 6 Mar 2003 02:10:43 -0500
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TAKETHISOUT budysbackagain(@)THAT TOO a-oh-ell dot com