Alocasia Polly
The mask-shaped alocasia: dark, glossy, arrow-shaped leaves with scalloped edges and bold silver-white veins, on a compact plant to two feet. The most widely sold alocasia and a good first one, if you accept that it wants humidity and may rest in winter.
Alocasia Polly is the one that looks like a tribal mask: deep green, almost black, glossy leaves shaped like arrowheads, with wavy scalloped margins and thick white veins that stand out like ribs. The leaves are held up on stiff stems in a compact clump about two feet tall. It is a hybrid, bred in Florida in the 1950s, and it is the alocasia most people meet first.
It is a fair introduction to the genus. It wants what all alocasias want: humidity, warmth, filtered light, and water that is regular but not excessive. It also does what all alocasias do in winter, which is slow down, drop a leaf or two, and sometimes go fully dormant. That is not death.
Light
Bright, indirect light. An east window or a north window with good sky, or a few feet from a west window. Direct sun scorches the leaves in an afternoon. In too little light it drops leaves and stops.
Water
Water when the top inch or two is dry, every five days in summer and every ten in winter, and let it drain fully. Alocasias grow from corms that rot in wet soil, so never let it stand in water. Yellowing lower leaves with wet soil mean too much; drooping leaves with dry soil mean too little.
Soil and potting
A chunky, airy aroid mix: potting soil with orchid bark and perlite. Pot with drainage. Repot every eighteen months in spring, one size up. Small corms in the pot can be separated and grown on.
Feeding
Half-strength balanced feed every three weeks in spring and summer. It grows fast in warmth and is hungry. Skip winter.
Propagation
Corm division: when repotting, small bulb-like corms come away from the roots. Pot them in damp sphagnum or mix, keep warm and humid, and they sprout in a few weeks.
In a hot, dry home
Needs help. It wants fifty-five percent humidity, so a bathroom, a pebble tray with a plant group, or a humidifier through summer. Keep it far from the AC vent, which drops leaves faster than anything. Water every three to four days in the hottest weeks and use filtered water. Expect it to rest in winter and come back in spring.
Alocasia Polly varieties
Same care, different look. These are the named forms you will see for sale.
- Polly
The compact form, to about two feet. The usual one.
- Bambino
A miniature Polly with narrower leaves, under a foot.
- Amazonica (full size)
The larger parent form, to three feet or more.
- Mirror Face
A related hybrid with a glossy, almost metallic dark leaf and paler veins.
Problems and fixes
Lower leaves yellowing one at a time
Likely cause: Normal; alocasias shed old leaves as they grow new ones
Fix: Cut them off. Worry only if new leaves stop coming.
All leaves dying back in winter
Likely cause: Dormancy
Fix: Water sparingly, keep the corm warm, wait for spring.
Brown crispy edges
Likely cause: Dry air
Fix: Raise humidity.
Fine webbing under leaves
Likely cause: Spider mites, which love dry alocasias
Fix: Shower the plant, raise humidity, treat with insecticidal soap.
Alocasia Polly questions
Is Alocasia Polly pet safe?
No. Toxic to cats and dogs if chewed, and irritating to people.
Why does it keep losing leaves?
Alocasias grow a new leaf and drop an old one; a plant with four or five leaves at a time is normal. Losing all of them in winter is dormancy.
Is Polly the same as African mask?
Yes. Polly is the compact cultivar of Alocasia amazonica, sold under both names.
Plants with a similar rhythm
Alocasia Silver Dragon
- Light
- Medium to bright indirect
- Water
- Weekly
- Pets
- Toxic
