Alocasia Tandurusa ‘Jacklyn’ Care Tips

She’s a rare beauty this one!

Which ones of us out there are not tempted by Alocasias? Just look at those leaves: solid colors, strong venation, shaped like a work of art, each new one shooting up even higher on those thin flexible stems. Beauty of Alocasias are enticing and eluding, although not always long lived.

Alocasia Tandurusa commonly named ‘Jacklyn’ is an Indonesian native (from Sulawesi Island to be exact) and boy, those girls like their native environment to be matched! 

Although not recommended as a beginner’s plant, Jacklyns are not a bad one to start with if you are looking into adding some of these gorgeous aroids to compliment an already existing collection. Not as finicky as Polly and nowhere near as dramatic as Frydeks, Jacklyn will happily grow in most home conditions, given her minimum plant raider requirements are met.

1. Light: a lot of it. Like, a lot. Not scorching afternoon rays, but gentle morning Eastern sun or diluted western rays will do nicely. Alocasias like to be “lit” for up to 14 hours a day: I noticed they enjoy prolonged exposure to growlights immensely and can extend their leaves all the way up to the source (my Zebrina burnt herself multiple times trying to hug a growlight). By all means Alocasias are not a low light plant: if not given bright enough conditions their stems will go limp and they will refuse to produce healthy new growth.

2. Water: alocasias are thirsty and like to be watered frequently enough but will not be happy to sit in a pool of water, make sure to give it a drink when very top of the soil dries out and empty the saucer of excess water 30 minutes after each watering.

3. Humidity: think about Indonesia and its tropical climate. It’s warm, it’s rainy it’s humid. Diffused sunrays illuminate aroids through canopies of the trees. This is what you are aiming at when dealing with most Alocasias. Although it’s hard to keep an 80% humidity in our homes, the minimum of 60% is desired. Plainly put, your plant will not tolerate being placed near an AC or a heater and will benefit greatly from a humidifier nearby.

Pro Tip: when it comes to humidity, there is a lot of advise you see out there on how to increase it in common household conditions, and some of them work while others don’t and solely based on imagination and overall lack of practical skill. Misting, for example, will do absolutely nothing for your plant when it comes to raising the humidity level: imagine you are thirsty and someone sprinkle a few drops of water on you and called it a day. By all means I do not discourage you from misting your plants altogether but be aware that it does more for keeping the leaves clean than regulating the home environment. Same goes for humidity trays: they will not save your plant from drying out but will make it slightly more comfortable during winter months with harsh central heat. 

If all of the above did not discourage you from getting an Alocasia and desire to have those stunning textured leaves in your collection is greater than fear of failing to keep it happy, here are a few tricks to help you get through your first Alocasia parenting experience with minimal losses:

• Greenhouse Cabinet - works like a charm. If set up properly it will mimic the warm humid environment sought after by Alocasias with a minimal effort on your end: you will still have to water but less frequently and the growth will commence at an insane rate.
• Glass Dome - for those who don’t want to or simply not able to come up with a cabinet. A glass dome does wonders for Alocasias by acting as a miniature greenhouse, however it might be hard to find one that fits the tall ladies.
• Liquid Fertilizer - your Jacklyn will need to be fed and often, she is a hungry one. I fertilize my crops twice a month during the growth season (April-October) and monitor their needs during the winter: an occasional feeding during dormancy will not do the hard.
• Plastic bag trick - by all means not an esthetically pleasing solution, but does the job if your plant is rapidly declining: place a large enough clear plastic bag to cover all the leaves, stems and top of the pot and tie up with a string or rubber band to create a sealed greenhouse: this might help if conditions in your house suddenly changed and your Alocasia started dropping leaves.

Although this already seems like a lot of information, the key to keeping Alocasias (and many others really) happy is consistency: watering on time and in proper manner, consistent temperatures and light/humidity levels will take a lot of your plate and will prevent your beautiful leafy friend from stressing.

BONUS

Alocasia Polly: a true story of Death and Rebirth.

Polly was my first Alocasia in the new apartment: brought in from the local garnet center we did not get along from the getgo. For some reason, her leaves did not bring me joy, the stems looked creepy and I simply didn’t know what to do with it. I’ve read that alocasias like a lot of water and humidity, so I placed it by the window and watered it like a fern and by Christmas all of her leaves yellowed and declined and I was left with a stump in a 6” pot.

What did I do wrong? Well, everything to be honest: first of all, I brought in a sick overwatered plant from a garden center (which mostly sells sick and overwatered plant as I learned some time later) and did not repot it: when I finally took the stump out, a plastic piece broken off of a smaller pot came out together with the soil. I watered it too much and put it in a North Facing window where it did not get anywhere near enough the light it needed. I also put it on a windowsill where it was exposed to cold winter drafts. My poor Polly got no consistency and no humidity and most importantly, it didn’t get enough love. 

But there was one thing I did right: I did not throw it out. And if you’ve made it this far in this particularly lengthy blog entry, then here is the reason your alocasia might lose all the leaves but will never die: corms. Corms is the natural way this plant propagates, and even if it succumbed to root rot, harvesting those little bead looking offsprings and putting them in fresh soil or moss will let you grow a brand new plant from the very start.

I saved my corms and since then, by experimenting with propagation boxes and now a greenhouse cabinet, I’ve raised multiple baby Pollies which were gifted and sold since. I kept one for myself and one other corm hid in one of my moss poles and decided to grow out of it next to a Swiss Cheese Vine. 

Alocasias might be many things, love them or hate them, but without denying they do have that lust for life.

 

ALOCASIA TANDURUSA ‘JACKLYN’