Singapore Government Logo

A Singapore Government Agency Website

Alocasia macrorrhizos 'Metallica'

Back

Alocasia macrorrhizos 'Metallica'

Family Name: Araceae
Synonyms: Alocasia indica 'Metallica', Alocasia plumbea 'Metallica'
Common Name: Metallic Giant Taro, Metallic Elephant's Ear

Alocasia macrorrhizos 'Metallica' is a large perennial herb that produces a rosette of large, erect leaves. This cultivar produces leaves with purple leaf stalks and veins with a purplish-green leaf blade.

Name

Family Name
Genus Epithet
Species Epithet
Infraspecific Epithet
Name Status (botanical)
Synonyms
Common Names
Comments
Species Summary

Classifications and Characteristics

Plant Division Angiosperms (Flowering Seed Plants) (Monocotyledon)
Plant Growth Form Herbaceous Plant
Lifespan (in Singapore) Perennial
Mode of Nutrition Autotrophic
Maximum Height 1.5 m to 2.5 m
Maximum Plant Spread / Crown Width 3 m

Biogeography

Preferred Climate Zone Tropical
Local Conservation Status Non-native (Horticultural / Cultivated Only)

Description and Ethnobotany

Growth Form It is a perennial herb that can reach up to 2.5 m in height.
Foliage The leaves are held upright and arranged in a rosette at the tip of the stems. The leaf blades are rounded, arrowhead-shaped, bluntly triangular in shape. The sinus ( indentation where the leaf stalk connects to the lateral lobes in aroids) is naked or open, with no connecting leaf blade between the posterior/lateral lobes. The petioles (leaf stalks) and veins are purple, and the leaf blades are a purplish-green and glossy on the upper surface, giving a silvery shine.
Stems The stems are underground corms (thick, often round, modified stems) that elongate as the plant ages, either growing erect or decumbent (lying along the ground with the leafy shoot curving upwards).
Flowers The inflorescence is an off-white spadix comprising of a yellow appendix (a sterile rod-like upper portion of the spadix) and tiny fertile flowers in the lower portion. The appendix is equal to or exceeds half the length of the entire spadix. The spadix is subtended by a spathe; an upper portion is open, white to yellowish-green, and a bulbous, green enclosed portion surrounds the female flowers, separated by a tight 'waist'. The upper portion of the spathe becomes hood-like when the male flowers mature. The peduncle (inflorescence stalk) barely extends beyond the cataphyll (leaf-like structure that surrounds and protects a newly emerging leaf blade in aroids).
Cultivation This species grows best in bright light with light shade and moist, but well-drained loamy soil. However, it can tolerate shade to full sun, and sandy to clayey soils.
Etymology The generic epithet Alocasia is derived from the Greek terms, a- "not" and kolokāsiā "lotus root", alluding to its similarity to Colocasia, a closely-allied genus. The specific epithet macrorrhizos is Greek for "large roots," possibly referring to the thick, root-like stems.

Landscaping Features

Desirable Plant Features Ornamental Foliage, Ornamental Form
Landscape Uses Parks & Gardens, Focal Plant
Thematic Landscaping Bioswales / Sunken Garden, Silver Garden
Usage Hazard - Cons Irritant - Sap, Toxic Upon Ingestion
Usage Hazard - Cons Remarks Irritant Sap/ Toxic Upon Ingestion: The slightly milky sap contains calcium oxalate raphides, which are needle-shaped crystals that can cause irritation to skin, mouth and throat. Keep plants away from children and pets.

Plant Care and Propagation

Light Preference Semi-Shade, Full Sun
Water Preference Lots of Water, Moderate Water
Plant Growth Rate Fast to Moderate
Rootzone Tolerance Moist Soils, Fertile Loamy Soils, Well-Drained Soils
Maintenance Requirements Moderate
Potential Problems In wet, poorly-drained soil, the corms are prone to rot.
Pest(s) Chewing Insects
Propagation Method Division, Storage Organ (Corm)

Foliar

Foliage Retention Evergreen
Mature Foliage Colour(s) Green, Purple
Mature Foliage Texture(s) Glossy / Shiny, Raised / Sunken Veins, Thick
Foliar Modification Flower/Fruit Bract
Foliar Type Simple / Unifoliate
Foliar Arrangement Along Stem Rosulate / Rosette
Foliar Attachment to Stem Petiolate
Foliar Shape(s) Non-Palm Foliage (Deltoid, Sagittate)
Foliar Venation Pinnate / Net
Foliar Margin Entire - Wavy / Undulate
Foliar Apex - Tip Acute
Foliar Base Hastate
Typical Foliar Area Mesophyll ( 45cm2 - 182.25 cm2 )
Leaf Area Index (LAI) for Green Plot Ratio 3.5 (Shrub & Groundcover - Monocot)

Non - Foliar and Storage

Trunk Type (Non Palm) Non Woody
Stem Type & Modification Herbaceous
Root Type Underground (Fibrous Root)
Specialised Storage Organ(s) Underground (Corm)

Floral (Angiosperm)

Flower & Plant Sexuality Unisexual Flowers , Monoecious
Flower Colour(s) Yellow / Golden, Cream / Off-White
Flower Grouping Cluster / Inflorescence
Flower Location Axillary
Inflorescence Type Spathe & Spadix
Ovary Position Superior / Hypogynous
Flowering Habit Polycarpic

Fruit, Seed and Spore

Fruit Classification Simple Fruit
Fruit Type Fleshy Fruit , Berry

Image Repository

Images

Others

Master ID 342
Species ID 1638
Flora Disclaimer The information in this website has been compiled from reliable sources, such as reference works on medicinal plants. It is not a substitute for medical advice or treatment and NParks does not purport to provide any medical advice. Readers should always consult his/her physician before using or consuming a plant for medicinal purposes.
Species record last updated on: 26 June 2025.
Share