Rescue Mission: Propagating Alocasia Corms

I recently bought a really nice Variegated Alocasia. It looked amazing with those white patterns on the leaves.

Since Alocasias can be a bit dramatic when moved to a new place, I figured I'd just let it settle in my living room before doing anything. Didn't want to stress it out.

As I expected, the leaves drooped a little after a few days. I thought it was just shock. But after a week, it looked pretty sad. The leaves were totally limp.

I checked the roots, and sadly, I found root rot. Most of the roots were mushy. The soil it came in was just way too wet and dense for my apartment.

I had to act fast. I cut off the bad roots and moved the plant into Semi-Hydroponics (LECA) to let it recover without wet soil.

But it wasn't all bad. While digging through the dirt, I found about 20 Alocasia Corms (bulbs). Kind of a nice backup plan.

I cleaned them up and put them in a small container with damp sphagnum moss. Put a lid on to keep it humid. Now they're just sitting in a warm spot, and I'm waiting for some green spikes to show up.

It took a while, but the waiting paid off. I kept the moss damp and the lid closed for maximum humidity, and eventually, the magic happened.

Feb 21: The first signs of growth pushing up through the sphagnum moss.

Mar 5: One of the corms finally unfolded its first tiny leaf!

Mar 5: A second one followed right after. The rescue mission was a success.