Colocasia (also called ‘elephant ear’) is a beautiful plant to see. It is a very nutrient rich leaf and tuber. It is used both as a vegetable side dish as well as in different curries.
My journey with colocasia was accidental. I had bought it from the market for a vegetable dish. Out of the bunch which I had bought, I left one accidentally in the fridge and it remained at the back without my knowledge.
While cleaning the fridge after few days, I spotted it and it had already sprouted. Thinking that it would be a good thing to have at home as a plant, I just put it in a pot of red soil and kept it in a shaded region of the house. No sign of life for few days. Then I pushed it into the sunlight and up it shot the very next day.
Once the leaf started to appear, I was watering it regularly (almost daily). But suddenly I noticed that the leaves were drooping. When I watered it, the water was flowing out. In desperation, I just placed a bowl underneath the pot. The next day, it had perked up and the water had disappeared. I worked out that this plant seems to drink water off and on through the day and does not like it when it is given all at once. Obviously, we cannot attend to it all the time, hence this method was workable for both of us.
The leaves were growing beautifully and then from its own stalk, it started developing the next leaf. I soon got elephant ear leaves. It is still putting out more leaves so I have not harvested any of its tubers till now.
The process then is to sprout it in water for a couple of days, plant it in soil , keep it in a place with good sunlight (at least 3-4 hours) and water it regularly. Ensure that you have a container underneath to hold the water.
One of the easiest plants to handle, it keeps giving big leaves which can be used to make different dishes.
Hope you try growing this plant!
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