Caladium

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Caladium
Caladium schomburgkii changjur-1-yercaud-salem-India.JPG
Caladium schomburgkii
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Alismatales
Family: Araceae
Subfamily: Aroideae
Tribe: Caladieae
Genus: Caladium
Vent. (1800), nom. cons.
Species [1]

19; see text

Caladium distribution.svg
Range of the genus Caladium
Synonyms [1]

AphyllarumS.Moore (1895)

Caladium /kəˈleɪdiəm/ [2] is a genus of flowering plants in the family Araceae. They are often known by the common name elephant ear (which they share with the closely related genera Alocasia , Colocasia , and Xanthosoma ), heart of Jesus, [3] and angel wings. There are over 1000 named cultivars of Caladium bicolor from the original South American plant. [4]

Contents

The genus Caladium includes seven species that are native to South America and Central America, and naturalized in India, parts of Africa, and various tropical islands. [5] They grow in open areas of the forest and on the banks of rivers and go dormant during the dry season. The wild plants grow to 15–35 inches (40–90 cm) tall, with leaves mostly 6-18 inches (15–45 cm) long and broad. [6] [7]

Name

From Malay Keladi, which refers to a few genera within the Araceae family ( Alocasia , Caladium and Dieffenbachia ). However, it may just specifically refer to the Colocasia genus.

Species

Many names have been proposed for species and varieties in the genus, but the vast majority of the names have either been transferred to other genera or regarded as synonyms of other names. The following are accepted. [1]

  1. Caladium amazonicum E.G.Gonç. – Pará state northern Brazil
  2. Caladium andreanum Bogner - Colombia
  3. Caladium bicolor (Aiton) Vent. - widespread from Costa Rica to northern Argentina; naturalized in India, Bangladesh, western and central Africa, and various islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans and in the Caribbean
  4. Caladium clavatum Hett., Bogner & J.Boos - Napo region of Ecuador
  5. Caladium coerulescens G.S.Bunting - Venezuela
  6. Caladium cortesiae Croat & E.G.Gonç. – Colombia
  7. Caladium humboldtii (Raf.) Schott - Guyana, Amazonas State of southern Venezuela, Amazonas State of western Brazil, Loreto region of eastern Peru
  8. Caladium intermedium E.G.Gonç. – Tocantins state of northern Brazil
  9. Caladium macrotites Schott - Colombia, Venezuela, northwestern Brazil
  10. Caladium palaciosii Croat & L.P.Hannon – Ecuador and Peru
  11. Caladium picturatum K.Koch & C.D.Bouché - Venezuela, northwestern Brazil
  12. Caladium praetermissum Bogner & Hett. - range unknown
  13. Caladium schomburgkii Schott - Venezuela, northwestern Brazil, the Guianas
  14. Caladium smaragdinum K.Koch & C.D.Bouché - Venezuela
  15. Caladium steudnerifolium Engl. – western South America (Colombia to Bolivia)
  16. Caladium stevensonii Croat & Delannay – Colombia
  17. Caladium steyermarkii G.S.Bunting - Venezuela
  18. Caladium ternatum Madison - Colombia, Amazonas State of western Brazil
  19. Caladium tuberosum (S.Moore) Bogner & Mayo - Mato Grosso

Formerly placed here

Cultivation and uses

Several species are grown as ornamental plants for their large, arrowhead-shaped leaves marked in varying patterns in white, pink, and red (somewhat resembling the unrelated coleus) and have been in cultivation in Europe since the late 18th century. The two forms most widely cultivated are called "fancy-leaved" and "lance-leaved". The former is the more commonly seen and is the traditional caladium of cultivation; the leaves are more heart-shaped. The latter has more lance-head-shaped leaves. Most Caladiums in cultivation grow to about 24 inches (60 cm) high and 24 inches (60 cm) wide, although dwarf varieties are now in cultivation.

Numerous cultivars have been selected, most of them derived from C. bicolor. Many are sold as C. × hortulanem, a synonym for C. bicolor. [8] [9] The lance-leaved varieties are also derived from C. schomburgkii.

Caladiums grow from tubers and can be propagated by dividing the tubers. They are hardy only to USDA plant hardiness zone 10; in colder areas, they are typically grown as tender "bulbs" or as houseplants.

During their growing season, they require moderate watering (damp, not soggy). Most varieties prefer partial to full shade, although sun-resistant varieties are now in cultivation. Approximately 98% of all caladium "bulbs" are from Lake Placid, Florida, in the United States. In recent years, many new varieties have become available through breeding and are now largely disease resistant. The bulk of "bulb" production is sold to pot producers, who in turn provide local nursery outlets with potted caladiums ready for immediate planting. Most "bulb" growers also sell direct retail via websites, shipping of "bulbs" takes place in the spring when temperatures permit ("bulbs" are subject to damage if temperatures are too low).

In temperate areas, they should be lifted before the first frost. The tubers are dried and stored for the winter when temperatures fall to 65 °F (18 °C), and stored moderately dry (not bone-dry) over the winter at temperatures between 56 °F (13 °C) and 61 °F (16 °C).

All parts of the plant are poisonous. They should not be ingested and may irritate sensitive skin.

Public displays

An annual festival is held during the last weekend of July in Lake Placid, Florida, home to a majority of the world's caladium fields. A popular activity is a tour of the fields of caladiums, the product of local growers. Every July since 2003, Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center in Kissimmee, Florida, has presented the Florida Caladium Showcase,a large indoor and outdoor display of the plants, including new varieties. In addition, Classic Caladiums of Avon Park, FL, holds an annual early September Open House caladium garden of over 2 acres in addition to farm tours. Many universities feature caladiums at field trials, you may also find displays at arboretums and many public gardens.

Caladiums are tubers, not corms or bulbs. A corm is a compressed mass of stem tissue with a basal plate (root tissue) at the bottom and one or more "eyes" on top from which vegetative growth and flowers will appear. A tuber is stem tissue with various eyes which may grow vegetative growth or roots.

Caladium drooping

They prefer a moderate shady place with indirect sunlight, high humidity, and a well-structured watering schedule.[ citation needed ]

Caladium is a tropical plant native to Brazil. It is intolerant to low temperature or prolonged absence of water. After a while without water, Caladium leaves will go dormant and droop. [10]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Araceae</span> Family of flowering plants

The Araceae are a family of monocotyledonous flowering plants in which flowers are borne on a type of inflorescence called a spadix. The spadix is usually accompanied by, and sometimes partially enclosed in, a spathe. Also known as the arum family, members are often colloquially known as aroids. This family of 114 genera and about 3,750 known species is most diverse in the New World tropics, although also distributed in the Old World tropics and northern temperate regions.

<i>Dieffenbachia</i> Genus of plants

Dieffenbachia, commonly known as dumb caneorleopard lily, is a genus of tropical flowering plants in the family Araceae. It is native to the New World Tropics from Mexico and the West Indies south to Argentina. Some species are widely cultivated as ornamental plants, especially as houseplants, and have become naturalized on a few tropical islands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Corm</span> Underground plant stem

Corm, bulbo-tuber, or bulbotuber is a short, vertical, swollen underground plant stem that serves as a storage organ that some plants use to survive winter or other adverse conditions such as summer drought and heat (perennation).

<i>Philodendron</i> Genus of flowering plants

Philodendron is a large genus of flowering plants in the family Araceae. As of June 2013, the Plants of the World Online accepted 621 species; other sources accept different numbers. Regardless of number of species, the genus is the second-largest member of the family Araceae, after genus Anthurium. Taxonomically, the genus Philodendron is still poorly known, with many undescribed species. Many are grown as ornamental and indoor plants. The name derives from the Greek words philo- 'love, affection' and dendron 'tree'. The generic name, Philodendron, is often used as the English name.

<i>Xanthosoma</i> Genus of plants

Xanthosoma is a genus of flowering plants in the arum family, Araceae. The genus is native to tropical America but widely cultivated and naturalized in other tropical regions. Several are grown for their starchy corms, an important food staple of tropical regions, known variously as malanga, otoy, otoe, cocoyam, tannia, tannier, yautía, macabo, ocumo, macal, taioba, dasheen, quequisque, ʻape and as Singapore taro. Many other species, including especially Xanthosoma roseum, are used as ornamental plants; in popular horticultural literature these species may be known as ‘ape due to resemblance to the true Polynesian ʻape, Alocasia macrorrhizos, or as elephant ear from visual resemblance of the leaf to an elephant's ear. Sometimes the latter name is also applied to members in the closely related genera Caladium, Colocasia (taro), and Alocasia.

<i>Alocasia</i> Genus of flowering plant

Alocasia is a genus of rhizomatous or tuberous, broad-leaved, perennial, flowering plants from the family Araceae. There are about 90 accepted species native to tropical and subtropical Asia and eastern Australia. Around the world, many growers widely cultivate a range of hybrids and cultivars as ornamentals.

<i>Hevea</i> Genus of flowering plants in the spurge family Euphorbiaceae that includes the rubber tree

Hevea is a genus of flowering plants in the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae, with about ten members. It is also one of many names used commercially for the wood of the most economically important rubber tree, H. brasiliensis. The genus is native to tropical South America but is widely cultivated in other tropical countries and naturalized in several of them. It was first described in 1775.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taro</span> Species of plant

Taro is a root vegetable. It is the most widely cultivated species of several plants in the family Araceae that are used as vegetables for their corms, leaves, stems and petioles. Taro corms are a food staple in African, Oceanic, East Asian, Southeast Asian and South Asian cultures. Taro is believed to be one of the earliest cultivated plants.

<i>Zamioculcas</i> Species of plant

Zamioculcas is a genus of flowering plants in the family Araceae, containing the single species Zamioculcas zamiifolia. It is a tropical herbaceous perennial plant, and is native to eastern Africa, including Kenya, KwaZulu-Natal, Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe. Its common names include Zanzibar gem, ZZ plant, Zuzu plant, aroid palm, eternity plant and emerald palm. It is grown as a houseplant, mainly because it has attractive glossy foliage and is easy to care for. Zamioculcas zamiifolia is winter-hardy in USDA Zones 9 and 10.

<i>Dracontium</i> Genus of flowering plants

Dracontium is a genus of flowering plants similar to those of Amorphophallus. Unlike Amorphophallus which is found in the Old World, this genus has a New World distribution and is native to South America, Central America, southern Mexico, and the West Indies.

<i>Asterostigma</i> Genus of flowering plants

Asterostigma is a genus of flowering plants in the family Araceae. It is native to Brazil and Argentina. The leaves are pinnate and the plant is tuberous.

  1. Asterostigma cryptostylumBogner - Brasília, Goiás, Minas Gerais
  2. Asterostigma cubense(A.Rich.) K.Krause ex Bogner - São Paulo
  3. Asterostigma lividum(G.Lodd.) Engl. - southern Brazil; Misiones Province of Argentina
  4. Asterostigma lombardiiE.G.Gonç. - Minas Gerais, Espírito Santo
  5. Asterostigma luschnathianumSchott - southern Brazil
  6. Asterostigma reticulatumE.G.Gonç - southern Brazil
  7. Asterostigma riedelianum(Schott) Kuntze - eastern Brazil
  8. Asterostigma tweedieanumSchott - Santa Catarina in southern Brazil
<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aroideae</span> Subfamily of flowering plants

Aroideae is a subfamily of flowering plants in the family Araceae. It is the largest subfamily in Araceae and consists of about 72 different genera, and 2,300 species. Many Aroideae have spiny pollen grains without a sporopollenin outer exine layer and lacking an aperture.

<i>Urospatha</i> Genus of flowering plants

Urospatha is a genus of flowering plants in the family Araceae that consists of 11 known species. They are found growing in South America and Central America in swamps, wet savannahs, and brackish water. The leaves of the species in this genus are upward pointing and sagittate (arrow-shaped). The inflorescences are quite unique; the spathe is mottled and elongated with a spiral twist at the end. The seeds are distributed by water and have a texture similar to cork that allows them to float. They also quickly germinate in water.

Zomicarpella is a genus of flowering plants in the family Araceae. It is native to Colombia, Peru and Brazil. The leaves are hastate or sagittate. The chromosome number for Zomicarpella species is 2n=26. Additionally, the seeds have an endosperm.

  1. Zomicarpella amazonicaBogner - Amazonas State of northwestern Brazil
  2. Zomicarpella maculataN.E.Br. - Colombia, Peru

Scaphispatha gracilis is a species in the family Araceae. This species is native to Brazil and Bolivia, and has peltate leaves that resembles those in the genus Caladium. The species was described by Heinrich Wilhelm Schott in 1860 after he received an inflorescence of the plant. He had not however seen the plant itself and it was not rediscovered until 1976 when Josef Bogner collected tubers from the plant and successfully flowered them at the Munich Botanic Garden. Upon seeing the inflorescence it was realized that this was the plant Schott had originally described.

Scaphispatha is a genus of flowering plants in the family Araceae. It contains two species, S. gracilis and S. robusta. The genus was believed to be monotypic until 2003 when a new species, S. robusta was discovered by Eduardo Gomes Gonçalves in northern Brazil. The plant had been grown in cultivation for some years, but had always been assumed to be a Caladium until it flowered.

  1. Scaphispatha gracilisBrongn. ex Schott - Bolivia, Brazil
  2. Scaphispatha robustaE.G.Gonç. - Pará, Mato Grosso, Tocantins, Goiás
<i>Thaumatophyllum bipinnatifidum</i> Species of epiphyte

Thaumatophyllum bipinnatifidum is a plant in the genus Thaumatophyllum, in the family Araceae. Previously it was classified in the genus Philodendron within subgenus Meconostigma. The commonly used names Philodendron bipinnatifidum and Philodendron selloanum are synonyms. This plant is native to South America, namely to Brazil, Bolivia, Argentina, and Paraguay, but is also cultivated as a landscape plant in tropical, subtropical and warm temperate climates.

Xanthosoma paradoxum is a species of flowering plant in the family Araceae indigenous to Colombia. Initially described as Caladium paradoxum, it was later transferred to the Xanthosoma genus due to its strong affinity with other Xanthosoma species.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Caladium Vent. Plants of the World Online . Retrieved 14 May 2024.
  2. ↑ Sunset Western Garden Book, 1995:606–607
  3. ↑ Caladium bicolor
  4. ↑ Caladium bicolor
  5. ↑ Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
  6. ↑ Macbride, J. F. 1936. Araceae, Flora of Peru. Publications of the Field Museum of Natural History, Botanical Series 13(1/3): 428–486.
  7. ↑ Funk, V. A., P. E. Berry, S. Alexander, T. H. Hollowell & C. L. Kelloff. 2007. Checklist of the Plants of the Guiana Shield (Venezuela: Amazonas, Bolivar, Delta Amacuro; Guyana, Surinam, French Guiana). Contributions from the United States National Herbarium 55: 1–584
  8. ↑ davesgarden.com
  9. ↑ floridata.com
  10. ↑ Craft, King (4 October 2021). "Why Is My Caladium Drooping (How to Fix Drooping)?". HomeCraftTips. Retrieved 4 October 2021.
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