Elephant Ears x2 for 2019 (Black Stem and Standard)

Last year I added some tropical flair to our patio containers by planting a series of elephant ear bulbs in the pots.  They complemented various flowers and we mostly had good luck with them.  Here's a look at the bulbs - 12 of them - that went in.  I ran out of room in containers, so I put a couple in the ground, too!  By July, they were starting to help fill in our containers.  

By August, they were in full form and provided a beautiful, almost trippy look in our containers.  I was really happy with them and figured I'd use them again in our containers.  So, I picked up this three pack of standard Elephant Ear bulbs.  These are smaller than the ones we put in last year, so perhaps the leaves will be smaller? 

But, why just redo what we did last year, right?  I had one "Black Magic" Elephant Ear in a container with some Night Queen Mini Dahlias last year and it seemed to grow nicely despite being constrained for space.    This year, I wanted something equally dramatic so I decided to try this "Black Stem" variety.  When I picked up the packaging, I thought it was called a "Black Swan", but alas...it isn't.  (Kind of an awesome name for one, right??)

This "Black Stem" package comes with just one bulb.  I'm going to try to get this thing started earlier in a container inside the house

The photo shows this Elephant Ear in a container all by itself, so that has me wondering....should I pair it with other flowers, or have it live alone in a container - kinda like how everyone seem to be planting a Fiddle Head Fig tree in a pot?  Everyone...including us! See below:

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I'd been trying to avoid the fiddle leaf fig phenomenon. I'm not great with house plants and I didn't want to test my skills on something so big. But then, Costco had a bunch and this lopsided fig called my name. She's been happily growing in this corner of our dining room for about six months. I think she's found her light!

A post shared by Building A Farmhouse (@newoldfarmhouse) on Feb 27, 2019 at 7:20am PST