That Little Black Alocasia

A very nice robust specimen of Alocasia scalprum

I love the deep patterns on the glossy thick black leaves 

Quick Post: I love this black Alocasia, botanically named A. scalprum. It has been a while since I have seen a good specimen of this. About 10 years ago, this was a hot item in garden shows but then it disappeared from the shelves.  I feared that the plant got over-collected as its price tag was quite exorbitant then. Specimens also prove to be quite difficult to grow as they pop in and out with the leaves, sometimes going into very long dormancy periods (which makes collectors afraid whether the plant would have enough energy to bring out a new leaf growth).  I was glad to see it again resurface in the last show giving the probability that some nurseries may have been successful in cultivating it. 😊