Alocasia ‘Sarian’ as it looked when it arrived. This photo was taken on 4-15-12, #86-11.
Alocasia ‘Sarian’
Possibly a hybrid between
Alocasia zebrina x Alocasia micholitziana
a-loh-KAY-see-uh zeb-REE-nuh
x
a-loh-KAY-see-uh mik-oh-lit-zee-AY-nuh
The genus, Alocasia (Schott) G.Don, was named and described by George Don in Sweet’s Hortus Britannicus in 1839. They were first listed as Colocasia sect. Alocasia by Heinrich Wilhelm Schott in Meletemata Botanica in 1832.
As of 11-18-23 when this page was last updated, Plants of the World Online lists 88 species in the Alocasia genus. It is a member of the plant family Araceae with 142 genera. Those numbers could change as updates are made on POWO.
I bought my Alocasia ‘Sarian’ from Wellspring Gardens in the spring of 2012. I thought it was odd how I bought many plants and ‘Sarian’ arrived with a stub of a petiole and one leaf barely starting. Despite this, it survived and did just fine.
Alocasia ‘Sarian’ on 6-2-12, #95-11. I decided to put it in the ground.
According to the internet, Alocasia ‘Sarian’ MAY be a hybrid between Alocasia zebrina x Alocasia micholitziana. Both are smaller species and have some very interesting features. Alocasia zebrina is sometimes marketed under the name Alocasia zebrina ‘Reticulata’. Some websites call them, incorrectly, Alocasia zebrine. It would be a really interesting plant to add to a collection because it has very interesting arrow-shaped kind of bi-color green leaves. The petioles are kind of striped, which gave this species its name. It is only cold hardy from USDA Zones 11 and up, which means it is NOT cold hardy at all. They can go dormant at 55 degrees and they grow to 36″ (one website said 60″). The other possible parent, Alocasia micholitziana also only grows to around 36″ and is cold hardy in zones 9-11. It features dark green leaves with creamy white midribs. It is sometimes marketed under the name Alocasia micholitziana ‘Frydek’.
Alocasia ‘Sarian’ back in a pot on 6-11-12, #99-10.
Some folks consider Alocasia ‘Sarian’ to be a species rather than a hybrid and list them as Alocasia sarian. However, there is no accepted species, or even a synonym called Alocasia sarian on any plant database.
Alocasia ‘Sarian’ petioles on 6-16-12, #100-4.
Alocasia ‘Sarian’ does NOT like temperatures below 55 degrees F so it should be one of the first to bring inside for the winter.
Alocasia ‘Sarian’ on 7-3-12, #107-11.
Some websites say Alocasia ‘Sarian’ grows to a height of 3-5′ tall while Brian’s Botanicals says 12′. How can two parents that only grow to around 36″ produce a hybrid that grows to 12′?
Alocasia ‘Sarian’ with two babies on 11-23-12, #131-4.
The above photo was taken in the east sunroom at the mansion after the temps started getting cooler.
<<<<2013>>>>
Alocasia ‘Sarian’ on 6-29-13, #159-3.
I moved back to the farm in mid-Missouri in February 2013. The trip took 8-9 hours and it was a cold 30 degrees all the way. The last 2 hours was snowing and there was a lot of snow on the ground at my parent’s farm. I moved the plants from the trailer to the basement with a lack of a better place at the time. I gave up most of my plants, but I still brought A LOT with me. While most of the Alocasia did fine, Alocasia ‘Sarian’ did NOT like the cold trip. It decided it was time to go dormant but luckily the temps warmed up and I got it outside before that completely happened.
Alocasia ‘Sarian’ on 7-3-13, #160-3.
It will be OK for now…
Alocasia ‘Sarian’ on 6-24-13, #162-10.
Such beautiful leg(s), I mean, “What a beautiful petiole!”
Alocasia ‘Sarian’ on 9-17-13, #188-10.
The Alocasia ‘Sarian’ was looking really good again by September 17, 2013.
Alocasia ‘Sarian’ on 8-30-17, #181-14.
Alocasia ‘Sarian’ has very interesting leaves.
Alocasia ‘Sarian’ on 9-1-13, #183-1.
Even her baby is doing great!
We got through the summer of 2013 with flying colors then when temps started getting cooler I had to move the Alocasia to the basement for the winter.
<<<<2014>>>>
Alocasia ‘Sarian’ on 7-12-14, #231-10.
I must admit Alocasia ‘Sarian’ has been a challenge. Experience has taught me a few things about Alocasia and that is that some species and hybrids go dormant very easily. Of course, ‘Sarian’ did it AGAIN. The photo above was taken on 7-12-14 (#231-10). Although it did come up in 2014, it remained kind of weird for the most part. The above photo was the last one I took of my Alocasia ‘Sarian’ companions.
SOMEDAY may try another Alocasia ‘Sarian’ when I have better conditions…
I hope you enjoyed this page and maybe found it useful. If you have any comments, questions, or suggestions, I would like to hear from you. Please click on “like” if you visited this page. It helps us bloggers stay motivated. 🙂 You can check out the links below for further reading. The links take you directly to the genus and species of this plant.
The Belmont Rooster 