About
A popular ornamental plant, *Alocasia zebrina* is notable for its striking, striped leaf stalks, which give it its common name, the zebra plant. It is easily propagated by corms and is highly valued in horticulture worldwide.
Field notes
Morphology
The plant can grow to 1.8 m (6 ft) but may reach 2.9 m (10 ft). It features a petiole that is pale green and characteristically streaked with darker green to brown stripes. The leaf blade is glossy green, leathery, and arrow-shaped (sagittate), measuring 45 to 100 cm (1.48 to 3.28 ft) long and bisected at the base into two triangular to ovate lobes. Flowers are borne in pairs and measure about 16 cm (6.3 in) long, and the fruits are orange.
Distribution & habitat
Endemic to the islands of Luzon, Mindanao, Leyte, Samar, Biliran, and Alabat in the Philippines.
History & etymology
First described by John Gould Veitch in 1862 from specimens collected in the Philippines. The species is named after its distinctive striped leaf stalks.
Conservation
It is included in the National List of Threatened Species of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources of the Philippines, and wild harvesting is illegal.
Habitat
- Altitude
- Not recorded
- Altitude class
- —
- Native to
- Mindanao, Philippines
Cultivation
- Difficulty
- intermediate