Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ after I brought it home on 5-8-19, #569-1.
Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’
Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ has been on my wish list for MANY years. I could have ordered one online because they are no problem to find from several very good and reliable sources but I have been getting most of my plants from the local greenhouses. They are usually less expensive, I can bring them home right then, and it helps support the local businesses. I grew my first Colocasia ‘Tea Cup’ in 2009 and again in 2012. I was living in Mississippi at the time and lost the first one over the winter due to ignorance and being a Colocasia newbie. The second one I left behind when I moved back to Missouri in February 2013.
On May 5 (2019), I went to the four local greenhouses and found several 4 1/2″ pots of Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ at Muddy Creek Greenhouse. I looked them over and selected one that looked good and stood roughly 10 1/2″ tall. I transplanted it in the bed on the north side of the house on the right side of the porch steps.
The Plant Delight’s website says “Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ was discovered in the wild by Indonesian botanist Gregory Hambali and brought to the US by aroid specialist Alan Galloway. Tony further says it “makes a stunning 6’ tall clump of Colocasia ‘Fontanesii’-like leaves (glossy olive green) with a dark purple-black stem.”
Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ on 5-16-19, #573-7.
I planted my new friend on the right side of the porch steps on the north side of the house. I wanted it for this spot even though there are a couple of Achillea millefolium there. I just planted the Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ behind them. and moved them aside to take the above photo. It is going to look good with the Lysimachia nummularia ‘Goldilocks’ (Creeping Jenny).
USEFUL INFORMATION:
Family: Araceae
Origin: Discovered in Indonesia
Zones: USDA Zones 8a-11b (10-40° F)
Size: 3-6’
Light: Full sun to part shade
Soil: Well-draining, loose, organically enriched is best.
Water: Requires ample water for it to grow and do well. Prefers consistently moist soil.
Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ on 5-25-19, #576-20.
Well, I must admit, I expected A LOT more from this plant by the time the above photo was taken on May 25. I am just anxious, I suppose. I knew when it started getting warmer it would take off. While it is still cooler in the evening I have to make sure the soil isn’t too wet around this plant. The soil in the north bed stays wet longer…
Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ on 6-5-19, #583-13.
By June 5 this plant still doesn’t seem to have much ZIP…
On June 13 I went to Muddy Creek Greenhouse to take them a few plants and pick up an Achillea ‘Sassy Summer Silver’ and a Veronica ‘Very Van Gogh’. There wasn’t anyone at the greenhouse so I browsed a bit. I noticed the pots of Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ had been moved to a room and were all dead. Since no one was there, I went to have a look. Ummm… There were webs on the plants and it appeared they may have had a bout with Spider Mites. Hmmm… You just never know…
Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ on 6-15-19, #590-5.
The Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ is growing and has a new leaf now.
Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ on 6-22-19, #593-9.
I take a lot of photos to show how plants progress and sometimes I run out of words.
Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ on 8-11-19, #613-3.
By August 11, the Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ was doing much better. Here in west-central Missouri, the heat of the summer may not be consistent until sometime in July. Colocasia like heat, humidity, and consistent moisture. They are also heavy feeders when they are growing. If they don’t have the right combinations it may take them a while to take off.
Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ on 8-11-19, #613-4.
You see a lot of photos online of really nice looking plants and think when you bring them home they will just automatically start growing and become like those in photos. Well, some plants may do that but for others it takes time.
Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ on 8-11-19, #613-5.
I have grown Colocasia esculenta for many years and they always do very well and grow multiple leaves and get pretty big. So, it is easy to assume all Colocasia will do the same…
Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ on 8-20-19, #615-9.
By August 20 when the above photo was taken the Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ was looking great.
Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ on 8-20-19, #615-10.
Typical cup-shaped leaf.
Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ at 39″ tall on 8-30-19, #618-8.
By August 30, the Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ had grown to 39″ tall.
Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ on 8-30-19, #618-9.
A leaf of the Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ holding water…
Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ on 8-30-19, #618-10.
Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ on 8-31-19, #619-3.
A new leaf has unfurled…
Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ on 8-31-19, #619-4.
Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ on 9-6-19, #624-4.
My farm is in west-central Missouri so it takes a while for temps to start heating up in the spring. Plants that like heat and humidity like the Colocasia may take a while to start growing well.
Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ on 10-1-19, #637-5.
The sad thing is, once October arrives I know cooler temps will be coming and the season will soon end…
Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ at 52″ tall on 10-10-19, #638-2.
By October at the Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ had grown to 52″ tall and I was impressed…
Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ on 10-10-19, #638-3.
NICE!
Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ on 10-11-19, #639-17.
I had to move the potted plants inside for the winter on October 11 in 2019 because an “F” was in the forecast. The first few “F’s” don’t always give the Colocasia a good ZAP but the big one is soon to come. According to information online, you are supposed to wait until they get a ZAP and the leaves die before digging them up to store them for the winter. I always do that and the Colocasia esculenta rhizomes always do well in the basement over the winter. The rhizomes of the Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ did fine until close to the time for them to go outside then it rotted…
Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ on 6-27-21, #805-4.
I bought another one in 2020 but I was very busy over the summer so I didn’t get to take many plant photos… I brought home another Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ in 2021, this time from Lowe’s. It was a good-sized plant and I paid more than I normally would. It did take right off, though, and turned out to be an impressive plant.
Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ on 10-1-21, #838-1.
I like this spot for the Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ because I can see it every time I go back inside.
Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ on 10-4-21, #840-4.
Even with cooler temps and decreasing daylength, it continued to do quite well.
Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ on 10-4-21, #840-5.
It produced several offsets and I dug them all to store in the basement for the winter. But, sorry to say, I didn’t plant any of the Colocasia rhizomes in 2022. Not even the Colocasia esculenta I have been growing since 2009… I was so busy I didn’t even check on them. GEEZ!
There are many websites, including Dave’s Garden, that says Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ is a cultivar of Colocasia esculenta. If you have ever grown this cultivar, or Colocasia ‘Tea Cups’ next to a Colocasia esculenta, you can clearly tell this plant is not a cultivar of Colocasia esculenta. Well, of course, there are “black leaved” cultivars of Colocasia esculenta such as ‘Black Magic’ and many others, but they look similar besides the color.
Various websites publish different zones where this plant is cold tolerant in as well as various mature heights. That depends on a lot of factors and various growing conditions. If you fertilize them with a super-dooper fertilizer they may get bigger. I just put mine in good soil and amended it with composted cow manure, straight from the farm. A friend of mine suggested adding a little bone meal but I haven’t done that yet. So, we shall see what happens.
I try to find a Colocasia ‘Coffee Cups’ every spring, but sometime the pots are unlabeled and I don’t know if they are “Coffee Cups’ or ‘Tea Cup’. Either one os fine…
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. If you notice I made an error, please let me know. You can also email me at thebelmontrooster@yahoo.com.
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