Alocasia

What the sources say about its care

Sources file this plant under other names: Alocasia spp. (ASPCA, genus only). Citations below point at the name its source uses.

Light

Partial shade

RHS · read 11 September 2026

Water

Moist but well-drained

RHS · read 11 September 2026

Humidity

No source read publishes a humidity figure for any plant on this site. What follows is general guidance for foliage plants.

ASHRAE recommends indoor relative humidity between 30% and 60% 30–60%

Penn State Extension · read 11 September 2026

Temperature

How cold this tolerates, not what it prefers. No source read for this site publishes a preferred range for a plant indoors.

H1A — warmer than 15°C 15 °C

RHS · read 11 September 2026

Soil

Loam; pH Acid or Neutral

RHS · read 11 September 2026

Toxic to cats

Toxic

ASPCA names the genus (Alocasia spp.), not the species.

ASPCA, filed as Alocasia spp. · read 11 September 2026

Toxic to dogs

Toxic

ASPCA names the genus (Alocasia spp.), not the species.

ASPCA, filed as Alocasia spp. · read 11 September 2026

Harmful to people

Toxic when eaten; irritates skin and eyes. Use gloves and protective gear when handling it.

RHS · read 11 September 2026

How it usually goes wrong

Brown brittle margins with a green centre

A narrow dry border on the alocasia, often with a faint yellow line against the healthy tissue. It appears on several leaves at once rather than spreading from one.

Transpiration rises as the air dries, and the tissue furthest from a vein loses first. Penn State Extension notes there is no single humidity figure that suits every indoor plant, which is why this site publishes a range rather than a number.

Telling it apart: What else in the room changed. Edges that browned when the radiators came on point at the air rather than at the watering.

Penn State ExtensionAlocasia brown leaf tips and edges: causes

The crown leans hard toward the window

A alocasia reaches. Stems extend between leaves, and the newest growth is the palest thing on the plant while older leaves hold their colour.

Placed below what its source describes, the plant prioritises reaching over building. Longer stems and smaller leaves are that choice made visible.

Telling it apart: Measure the gap between the newest two leaves against an older pair. Reaching is a change in spacing, not only in shade.

RHSDiagnose leggy growth on this Alocasia

The crown yellows from below and the pot stays heavy

On a alocasia the yellowing climbs from below. Affected leaves feel limp rather than papery, and water sits in the saucer long after it drains through.

Roots sitting in water run out of oxygen, and the first sign above ground is the oldest leaves being given up. Its source describes moist but well-drained soil, which is air as much as water.

Telling it apart: Whether the drainage hole drips when the pot is tilted. Water still running out days later is the answer.

RHSAlocasia leaves turning yellow: causes

Not sure which it is? Ask the diagnosis questions for Alocasia.

Routine care

Watering

From spring to autumn, water generously and feed every 2-3 weeks with a general liquid fertiliser. In winter, cut watering to a minimum and hold the temperature above 15°C.

RHS · read 13 September 2026

Feeding

From spring to autumn, water generously and feed every 2-3 weeks with a general liquid fertiliser.

RHS · read 13 September 2026

Propagation

Sow seed fresh from the plant at 73°F (23°C). Division works in spring or summer, and stem cuttings in spring.

RHS · read 13 September 2026

Pruning

Pruning is not needed.

RHS · read 13 September 2026

Pests and diseases

Can be troubled by mealybugs and glasshouse red spider mite. Diseases: usually none.

RHS · read 13 September 2026

Photographs

About the plant

Growth form

Bushy (evergreen)

RHS · read 13 September 2026

Size

Height 1-1.5 metres; spread 1-1.5 metres after 5–10 years

RHS · read 13 September 2026

Common problems with Alocasia

• Yellow leaves
• Brown tips and edges

Other Alocasia

• No photograph yetAlocasia azlaniiSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
• No photograph yetAlocasia lauterbachianaSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
• Alocasia micholitzianaSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
• Alocasia porteiSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
• No photograph yetAlocasia reversaSourced care, difficulty not yet judged
• Alocasia zebrinaSourced care, difficulty not yet judged

More of the Araceae family

• Arrowhead plantEdges of the leaf blades brown while the middle stays sound
• Calla lilyEdges of the leaves brown while the middle stays sound
• Dumb caneLeaf tips go crisp and brown
• Elephant earCrisp margins that appear in winter
• Flamingo flowerBrown brittle margins with a green centre
• Heartleaf philodendronA thin dry rim that crumbles between the fingers

Plants with similar care

• Moth orchidCrisp margins that appear in winter
• Nerve plantDry, curled edges on leaves near a heater
• Peacock plantLeaf tips go crisp and brown
• Prayer plantLeaf tips go crisp and brown
• Rex begoniaBrown brittle margins with a green centre
• No photograph yetVenus flytrapA thin dry rim that crumbles between the fingers

Sources

• ASPCA · read 11 September 2026
• Penn State Extension · read 11 September 2026
• RHS · read 13 September 2026

What this does not cover

The figures above are what published sources say, not measurements of the plant in your room. They say nothing about your pot size, your water, the season, or how far from the glass the plant stands, and those decide more than any figure here does.

Humidity has no species figure because no source read for this site publishes one, and the only temperature published for this plant is a cold floor. The simulator fills those gaps with general figures for its kind of plant, marked as general and listed on how we read sources. Where a toxicity row says the plant was not assessed, that is the absence of a finding and not a finding of safety.

If something is already wrong, the diagnosis tool asks about the soil, the window and the watering, which is where the answer usually is.