Shop Products
Houzz Logo Print
tropicbreezent

Caladiums

tropicbreezent
11 years ago

Just showing off some of my Caladiums that have been emerging from dormancy the past couple of weeks. Don't have any names.

{{gwi:394656}}

{{gwi:394657}}

{{gwi:394659}}

{{gwi:394661}}

{{gwi:394663}}

{{gwi:394665}}

{{gwi:394667}}

Comments (61)

  • tropicbreezent
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Mike, there is a huge range of varieties available, and they keep developing more all the time.

    This is one that was already on my place when I moved in. It's very similar to the one in the first photo, but a dwarf version.

  • garyfla_gw
    11 years ago

    Hi
    Florida produces Caladiums by the gazillions . You can get the older varieties at any of the box stores ,Usually in spring . i usually get packages of them from Walmart
    as I tend to lose them over winter due to rains .You can often get 25 for under 5 bucks In your area you'd probably want to dig them in the fall and store over winter in a frost free area. be sure to keep them dry!! lolWonderful landscape plant!! gary

  • dg
    11 years ago

    It would be so wonderful to be able to enjoy caladiums at this time of year! All us Northerners can do now is look at photos of them from last season. Here's one from last summer. The 'elephant ear' was bought at our local Walmart about 3 years ago. I dig and over winter it each year, then replant in that pot when it gets warm enough. The red/greens and whites were purchased in January 2012 at a nursery just outside of Lake Placid, FL. They did very well, in part I suppose, because they were so fresh. I dug them up in the fall and they are now stored away for winter awaiting warm weather for replanting.

    It's been a pleasure to see yours, thanks for the eye candy in January!

    Deb

  • tropicbreezent
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    They look really nice. Caladiums need a good feed to boost the tubers so they perform extra well the following season. These days there's so many colours and patterns to choose from, it would take a long time to become bored.

  • dg
    11 years ago

    Thank you tropicbreezent, I really enjoy caladium. The pot is in a good viewing location through the front windows of our home. I usually plant some in a couple of other pots as well. It has to really warm up in our zone 6A before I even dare plant caladium. It's usually after Mother's Day to be safest, and that's a long wait for me!

    My Mom called earlier today (she's in central Florida atm) and informed me that the temperature is 80 degrees ;-) So I'm curious, in tropical zones, are caladium dug up and let rest, or are they left in place and do not die back at all?

    Also thanks for the reminder about fertilizing. I sprinkle some Osmocote on the 'soil' surface when they get planted. Would a second application, around mid-season, to add energy for the next year be a good idea?

    Deb

  • garyfla_gw
    11 years ago

    Hi
    I'm at the north end of 10 florida. Caladiums go dormant around late Oct. all summer bulbs can be left in the ground IF they can be kept dry . there is another class of caladiums called "evergreen" though i find they go dormant just like the regulars though later and last longer. They're coming up right now while the regulars are still asleep.. I fertilize whenever in active growth but if you need to dig and store during winter I'd hold off to allow them to go dormant. gary

  • dg
    11 years ago

    Very interesting info about 'regular' and 'evergreen' caladiums and when they go dormant.
    :-)
    Thanks for the fertilizer advise, that's good to know. I'll think about this post while mixing up fresh medium for the pot next summer. It'll remind me about the importance of ferts for these guys the following year.

    Deb

  • Binish
    10 years ago

    Guys can watch my Collection here ..
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pz1Y33VT4Rs

    Here is a link that might be useful: My caladium collection

  • petrushka (7b)
    10 years ago

    i left all my caladiums in pots this year, usually i lift them out and store dry. and store at room temps indoors (no garage).
    so now i discovered that my largest ones are waking up - have sprouts and new roots too. i lifted the bunch with roots and discovered that soil in the middle of the pot was not bone dry - and that is after 2.5 mo of no water!
    it's too early to start them - not enough light, they'll get leggy by the window. so i can't decide to start watering them a bit or not? i'd prefer to wait 2-3 weeks. but don't want to shrivel up the sprouts/roots.
    what to do?

  • garyfla_gw
    10 years ago

    Hi
    Don't know what to suggest IME once they start there's no stopping probably should be st
    ored in cooler temps??
    Mine are not coming up and we've had an incredibly warm winter . I did dig and moved them to pots last fall as I planted amazon lily in the bed My "evergreen is up and already has two leaves !! Went dormant in Oct like the regulars. think I'll bite my lip and invest in a few more lol
    Good luck with yours looking at the national weather NOT a good time to plant caladiums gary

  • petrushka (7b)
    10 years ago

    yah, they were prolly 5F warmer then my normal storage temps (63-64F may be?) - i had no time to clean them up, so just left them in pots as is. they went dormant by mid oct as usual.
    so i lifted the corm layer with roots out of the pot - quite a shallow pancake now ;). so what if i put it in a cooler spot , around 58F may be? and just wait for 3 weeks? no water. will it be bad? i don't want to dry up the roots, just prevent the corms from sprouting more. they normally stay at 58F thru winter bare, so it shouldn't be worse now with roots and some soil?
    normally i put them on the sunny window with a light watering once until they come up like an inch. would that be better? it'll prolly take them 3 weeks to get there and then it'll be march and i should get some more sun.
    these are my first, best, largest :).
    i've had them for 8yrs!

  • edumike2020
    8 years ago

    tropicbreezent, am very much interested in the below Caladium.Would you please contact me or respond to this comment? Sorry, had to use your image, so you would be able to know the one am referring to. Thanks in advance

  • jay
    6 years ago

    Reviving this 2 y/o thread.

    The 2nd photo in this thread looks like the Buck variation I have. The 3rd photo looks like a Candidum Jr., and the pink ones in the 4th photo could be Pink Charms if they are not the same as my Bucks below.


    I purchased 12 Buck Caladium bulbs in the spring of 2017. One of the plants recently sent out 2 unusual leaves this month. Its previous leaves don't look like these 2. The unusual variation looks like a work of art. This shows the leaves with the new color and marking variations alongside the regular leaves:

    This is a leaf that has the mottled pink variation:

    This is a Buck Caladium that looks like the 11 others I have:

  • nicholsworth Z6 Indianapolis
    6 years ago

    this is the 3rd summer for this caladium..don't know the name..on the lookout for one with a lot of red (that's a bargain!!)..

  • jay
    6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    Yours above looks like a White Wing. I think my local Lowes might have had those recently. And a correction on my take of the 3rd pic in this thread...the foreground one looks like it could be a White Christmas, and the background one a Candidum. But I've seen Candidums put out lower leaves with more green contrast that look like the White Christmas.

    Here are some of my observations & successes with different red Caladiums. Comparative pic of colors:

    The Desert Sunset was sold by Lowes. It is also my quickest to grow from bulbs. Some of the leaves look faded but others in a different planting that get less sun have a richer color.

    This is a Brandywine (AKA: Irene Dank) that shows an older, redder leaf (top) that is over a foot long and younger, greener ones (bottom left). This grows like a Colocasia. It sends out pups and is the largest of my Caladiums. But larger bulbed ones only have 1-2 larger leaves at a time. A green pup leaf can be seen in the left center. The pups are thicker with more leaves. Many of the first leaves from the large bulbs I planted got sun burn and died but subsequent acclimated leaves did not. The plant on the bottom right is a Heart's Delight:

    This is the Burning Heart shown in a 5 gal. vintage milk can. The photo doesn't show the rich colors it really has. My favorite. It grows fast, is thick, and seems to do better with a lot of sun. I got it locally for $5.99 and the 4"(?) pot had Quality Nurseries - Dillsburg, PA written on it. No other place I've looked had these:

    This shows it in a 6" pot a few weeks after I got it. I brought it outdoors because it grew too large for the space I had for it:

    This is a Puppy Love. In on-line photos, it looked like a brilliant pink color. When I bought it the pink color looked like the on-line photos brilliant color too. But even with just morning sun it began to look faded with a lot of white on it. Almost sickly-looking The green edges were faded too:

    On the top left above is a Red Glamour. I planted it outdoors in April but it is not doing well even after moving it to a shadier spot. It just remains small.

    This is a Sweetheart. It has the same fading as the Puppy Love but worse. Here I have brought it indoors to nurse it back to a darker color but no luck with that:

  • nicholsworth Z6 Indianapolis
    6 years ago

    jay..wow..your reds are so dramatic!..I looked up White Wing..I think you're right..mine was from Lowe's..no tags..on clearance..the next time I'm in Lowe's I'm checking the caladiums..how do you over winter all of your plants?..dig and store?

  • jay
    6 years ago

    I haven't stored
    Caladium rhizomes through winter yet. I plan to carefully label,
    separate, & follow this guide:
    http://www.kallus.com/aroids/fallprep/fallprep.html


    I dug up, hurricane
    cut, and stored a musa basjoo in peat moss in a basement one winter
    and it went well. Keeping one in a pot indoors caused it to succumb
    to fungus and mites at the same time.


    I did overwinter
    Alocasias and Colocasias indoors in pots last winter. They were mostly hurricane
    cut. All went well but a Black Magic and an Illustris had mite
    infestations. The largest leaf on each was covered with a silky web
    almost like a covering. I sprayed that off and used insecticide and
    they recovered.


    On to what I found today: Below is a Ms Muffet
    Caladium with a nice leaf variation I haven't seen before. The variations are on a separate
    plant in the same pot and I can't tell if it's connected by the
    rhizomes to the others that are normal looking.


    Left, standard Ms
    Muffet leaf, right leaf with variation:

    2 Ms Muffet leaves with variation:

    Both types:

    Variation:

  • petrushka (7b)
    6 years ago

    i call it marbling - i've been able to get an occasional plant like that labeled 'Miss Muffet'. But i think it's some kind of a sport. I love it and i keep looking for it every year. It's deff a sep corm that it's growing from -i checked mine when i dug it up. somehow they get mixed up with MM's.

  • tropicbreezent
    Original Author
    6 years ago

    We're in the middle of winter here but I've still got 2 Caladiums in leaf. One's in a large pot with a couple of different Alocasias and an Anthurium.

    The other's in the ground. Has 3 leaves, all different.

  • nicholsworth Z6 Indianapolis
    6 years ago

    tropicbreezent..where do you live?..middle of winter with a caladium growing outside..NOT at all like my climate..

  • tropicbreezent
    Original Author
    6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    Nicholsworth55, I'm in Australia, opposite side of the weather cycle to you. I'm also your tomorrow ;)

  • nicholsworth Z6 Indianapolis
    6 years ago

    tropicbreezent..seems amazing to "talk" to someone so far away..LOVE to see Australia..furthest away from home that I've been..west to Hawaii..east to Jamaica..

  • tropicbreezent
    Original Author
    6 years ago

    Closest I've been to the US is Western Europe. And closest going east was Papua New Guinea. Also went eastwards to New Zealand, but because it's more to the south it probably wasn't really closer.

  • nicholsworth Z6 Indianapolis
    6 years ago

    Haven't been to Europe..but nearly every state in the US and Canada..lived in North Carolina and California..I love tropical plants but it takes a bit of effort to grow in the middle of the US!..bought 2 Creamsickle caladiums today..were marked down and such a deal..will post pics after planting..

  • tropicbreezent
    Original Author
    6 years ago

    They keep coming out with a lot of great new Caladiums, it's hard to keep up with them. But I like aroids in general and have a good collection of them. Always interested in seeing any new Caladiums though.

    Yes, I been to all the Australian states and (mainland) territories. I actually live in one of the territories and not a state. In Europe I got to about 25 countries, but not to about a dozen others. Travel's great, but it can take up a lot of time and money.

  • nicholsworth Z6 Indianapolis
    6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    tropicbreezent..I envy your travel experiences..I started a post in Tropical Plants with pics of my new caladiums..I said the wrong name..I did see one with a Creamsickle tag but mine are called Raspberry Moon..will be planting in a pot..

  • jay
    6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    I saw the post in Tropical Plants. Those should get more reddish once acclimated with new leaves. That one is on my wish list.

    Update to my earlier post about the Buck Caladium variation: After some more comparing and investigating I realized those are Brandywine Caladiums. The newer, smaller leaves appear identical to any Buck leaf. I forgot that I planted Brandywines in that spot.

    On the 2 pics from the winter season: The top winter pic looks 'like' a Red Ruffles, especially where the stem and leaf meet, except that it's not as deeply colored and its ruffles not as pronounced. I doubt it actually is a Red Ruffles. I have never seen that one before and this is the closest I've found: http://photobucket.com/gallery/user/meckms1/media/bWVkaWFJZDoxNjI2MTM3Nw which is labeled Florida Sweetheart. The bottom winter pic may be a Fannie Munson, White Queen, or Mrs F M Joyner. It seems these have 3 basic leaf color phases that ultimately end in pink with age & size. I cannot determine the cultivar with certainty. Maybe those 2 in the winter pics are the ancestral plants to the varieties I named.

    As for the very first pic in this thread that others have asked about, the green Caladium with pink & white speckles: It could be a Caladium Bicolor originating in Costa Rica. I haven't found definitive info on that one except that it may be an original non-hybridized variety or one of the first hybrids. Other bicolors have the typical reddish leaf center and veins surrounded by green edges like the 6th & 7th pics. Some web resources call the one in very first pic a Caladium bicolor “Florida Clown”. For now I think that's it. I didn't find a single seller.

    I'm glad I looked a little more into the top winter pic because it made me realize the cultivar of an unnamed one I have: What I previously thought was a White Queen is actually a Fiesta which is a newer cultivar:

  • nicholsworth Z6 Indianapolis
    6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    jay..I noticed the pic on the tag has more red than my plants do..I'm hoping I get more red..I LOVE your red ones!..although not as colorful as yours they were too cute and too cheap (1.50 ea) to pass up right?..I'm planting these in a pot..I have a shady yard and think of caladiums as a shade plant..if I put the pot in one of my "brighter" spots (still shady) will I get more red?..

  • tropicbreezent
    Original Author
    6 years ago

    Jay, there's a lot of hybridising of Caladiums done locally here and a lot are also imported from Thailand. That can make it difficult to get precise names. I ended up giving up on it. A lot of retailers have done the same, they just push them out labeled "Caladium".

  • jay
    5 years ago
    last modified: 5 years ago

    Update on overwintering Caladium bulbs: In this spring's race to sprout - one of my Heart's Delight corms/rhizomes was #1. It had a sprout over an inch long just 7 days after potting the bulb. It might have pushed through the soil earlier but I didn't notice it until today:

    (Last year's winner was a Brandywine Caladium that sprouted 13 days after potting a jumbo bulb)

    This Heart's Delight bulb came from a plant I got early last spring. Of all the early-planted Caladiums then, this did the best. By late summer I had to clip back about 1/3 to 1/4 of it because it grew so aggressively/thickly/quickly that it was crowding out my other Caladiums. There are photos of it above in my July 16, 2017 at 7:42AM post. This is a pic of a potted one that came from a broken piece of bulb - pic from Jul 8:

    This is the cluster of them I had to trim - pic from Aug 24. Center (the 2 clusters on the right bottom are Desert Sunset and Cherry Tart):
    For US z7 this is my top Caladium recommendation for a fast thick grower. It has handled half day full sun and I haven't tried it in more sun than that yet. It is not 100% red but the light green mottling that surrounds the red is quite striking. The darker green that surrounds the mottling provides contrast for viewing the mottling. The light green mottling lessens or stops when in full sun.

    To the right of the Heart's Delight cluster above is a green Alocasia Calidora. For US z7 this is my top Alocasia recommendation for a fast thick grower. It handles light freezes quite well.

    The Burning Heart I haven't tried planting early in the cold but it is 100% red, grows almost as big as a small elephant ear, and can handle full sun if acclimated to it.

  • tropicbreezent
    Original Author
    5 years ago

    Those look great. Will be interesting to see how the colours change in time. The plants need to photosynthesise at some stage.

  • jay
    5 years ago
    last modified: 5 years ago

    I bet they'll look like your 2nd pic and my 2nd pic on this thread later in the season.

    Below is my first Caladium to sprout from a corm/bulb this spring. It's a Heart's Delight I got as a plant last yr. The photo was taken exactly 3 weeks after the bulb was potted. It has an emerging green inflorescence bud even before its first leaf has opened:

  • jay
    5 years ago

    The Heart's Delight was beaten to the full open leaf status by a Miss Muffet. Below are my fastest bulbs to grow into plants or almost grow into plants this season: Heart's Delight, Miss Muffet, and Blushing Bride:

    tropicbreezent thanked jay
  • tropicbreezent
    Original Author
    5 years ago

    I don't recall having seen that Miss Muffet around, it's quite nice.

  • petrushka (7b)
    5 years ago

    >>Will be interesting to see how the colours change in time. The plants need to photosynthesise at some stage.

    my mostly pink Caladiums get darker more intense pink with time with no additional green. even to the end there is no green. Like 'FL Sweetheart' - it just has a green banding on the edge.

    my white ones get more green veining as they age ('White Queen') and very light white-yellow like miss Muffet get medium lime-green.

  • jay
    5 years ago

    Is there a difference between Caladiums labeled Florida Sweetheart vs Sweetheart? My Sweethearts held true to your observations, but mine became a more drab pink. See the July 16 post above for a pic.

    Today I bought 2 Caladiums labeled Pink Passion and their tag photos matched their appearance. I cannot tell the difference between those and the 2 unlabeled ones I thought were/are Fannie Munsons in the April 22 post above. Another flat of Caladiums on the same rack were Blushing Brides but were incorrectly labeled Cherry Tart and had photos of Cherry Tart on the tags. Here are the Pink Passions planted outdoors. So I'm not sure what to think on their true name:

  • tropicbreezent
    Original Author
    5 years ago

    Gave up ages ago on trying to name Caladiums. Here they're mostly sold without any cultivar name. I have so many different plants, when things become complicated I take the easy way out, LOL. Lately I've been collecting Calatheas, they all come with species names, no cultivar names. Gardening should be simple (and relaxing) like that :).

  • petrushka (7b)
    5 years ago
    last modified: 5 years ago

    i see nurseries selling both 'Sweetheart' and 'FL Sweetheart'. i know that FL was developed in FL and is patented.

    The new and distinct variety of caladium, developed and evaluated as S79-206 at the Gulf Coast Research and Education Center in Bradenton Fla., was derived from a selection made in 1979 from a 1977 cross between `Candidum Junior` and `Red Frill`. Ancestry of both parents in unknown, although `Candidum Junior` is believed to be a field mutation of `Candidum`.

    My 'FL Sweetheart' are always some shade of pink without any white (except at the green edge), while your 'Sweetheart' has a distinct pure white band in the middle. I start them early indoors - so the light is much dimmer and pink is much paler, but it's still very pale pink, not white. and there is no pink-white banding in the middle (like in yr july 16 pic).

    but when i look at pics in nurseries they look identical to me - and they all look like 'FL Sweetheart' :).

    so i looked at specifics and 'FL Sweetheart' is a much shorter 6-10" while 'Sweetheart' is listed at 12-18" height.

    came across this interesting fact:

    ‘Florida Sweetheart’ (the most popular red lance-leaved commercial cultivar and the most popular lance-leaved cultivar in all colors, respectively)

    tropicbreezent thanked petrushka (7b)
  • petrushka (7b)
    5 years ago

    but to make it worse...:) i just found this site that says 'FL S' is 12-18". And i say - no way! It's VERY short! so who knows...

  • jay
    5 years ago

    I've only seen Sweetheart at the nurseries I've visited. All seemed darker than mine. Maybe I gave it too much sun. I agree 12-18" is reaching based on my experience and what I've seen. Maybe in FL that could happen. I should try a FL Sweetheart next but the Candidum ancestry means there could be less red and more white or faded pink.


    Do you know the difference between Candidum and Candidum Junior? This is a pic of mine that came in an unlabeled bulb mix. Pic from July 2017:

  • jay
    5 years ago

    This is my marbled form of a Miss Muffet Caladium today. It was marbled when I bought it last summer. I overwintered it as a bulb in a paper lunch bag of peat moss. After planting the bulb it came up marbled again. I wasn't sure if it would but I'm glad it did. I hope it forms more bulbs this growing season.

  • petrushka (7b)
    5 years ago

    i saved all my corms from last year, but about half of them rotted.

    the marbled Miss Muffet came up first. 'White Queen' and 'Candyland' are out.

    but 'Raspberry Moon' and 'Mrs Halderman' are just peeking out.

    but i lost my 'FL Sweetheart'. I saw very large 'Sweetheart' at the flower shop - may be i'll get it - the pattern is my favorite!

  • petrushka (7b)
    5 years ago
    last modified: 5 years ago

    oh and i have a huge 'Red Flash' -going on 12 yr! always keep it indoors - leaves are too large , the wind just destroys it. I de-eyed it for the first time last year to reduce the leaf size - i have to support each stalk when they are so huge! but then i missed the hugeness!

    so no more de-eyeing for now.

    but all others i put outside to grow on the balcony.

  • jay
    5 years ago

    My Caladiums are doing well this yr. All Caladiums in this photo are from bulbs except for a Red Ruffles (3rd from right) and a Cherry Tart (2nd from right). Those 2 were bought this spring as plants. The Black Magic EE in the cage on the right has 3 shoots in addition to the main center shoot coming from the 11 lb bulb but it's all growing slowly. It was 6'8" last fall.

    Left to right Caladiums in the photo:
    Burning Heart, Brandywine, Heart's Delight, Red Ruffles, Cherry Tart.

    Based on the large size this early in the season, I'm estimating and hoping the Burning Hearts on the left reach 2 1/2 to 3 ft by the fall. I know the Heart's Delights will reach about 2 1/2 ft.

  • nicholsworth Z6 Indianapolis
    5 years ago

    my 6 pots of caladiums from last year..4 of them look nice..1 so so and 1 (right of my unplanted white begonias) is just a couple of tips..the squirrels dug up a couple of my pots last year..my 2 that don't look as well must be those..

  • jay
    5 years ago
    last modified: 5 years ago

    It looks like you have the perfect lighting, wind protection, and drainage for all your aroids. My Thai Giant has wet feet and the leaves are turning yellow from too much rain. It's on the top left of the below photo. We have 4 more days of rain in the forecast. In the center is a Thai Beauty, or Pink Symphony. I can't find concrete info on what the difference is:

    Because of the excess rain problem this year is my EEs aren't growing fast enough to provide enough shade for my lighter Caladiums. So I had to make some shade with landscape cloth:
    My Rubicundum Caladium which was dying indoors after sprouting from a bulb is now starting to grow again after planting outdoors. It should look spectacular with pink splotches on a field of dark purple-gray when large:

    (the right side leaf has some rabbit damage)

  • nicholsworth Z6 Indianapolis
    5 years ago

    I have nice growing conditions for plants that don't need full sun..I have so many mature trees that I have dappled light and NO full sun..we're behind on rainfall but some of my EEs are a little yellow..I used a little blood meal when I planted them..maybe they need more..

  • jay
    5 years ago

    I might use something other than EE's to provide the shade for my 2 Caladium patches next year. I'll also be raising every Caladium and EE I plant for better drainage. Here is a Burning Heart Caladium inflorescence I noticed today:

  • nicholsworth Z6 Indianapolis
    5 years ago
    last modified: 5 years ago

    Oooh I like that..never had any blooms..just leaves..but I'm happy just to see them grow..

    this was a pleasant surprise..some sad little bulbs came up!..I put several bulbs at the end of the area where I planted EEs not expecting much but they're growing..

Sponsored
Capri Home Renovations
Average rating: 5 out of 5 stars33 Reviews
Reputable Home Renovation Company Serving Northern Virginia