Alocasia heterophylla (C.Presl) Merr. is a very elegant and stunning Alocasia species. Its distinguishing feature are very noticeable submarginal veins, which clears the leaf margins by about 3 mm. It is a very variable species with both peltate and non-peltate leaves even on one specimen. Its leaf blades are narrowly (hasto-) sagittate, sometimes shallowly to deeply peltate in adult plants and then some non-peltate leaves also present; anterior lobe to 20 cm long, to ca. 10 cm wide at base, narrowly triangular.
Given this species’ proclivity for high phenotypical variation, that is, high variability in how the plants appear, it was given the name heterophylla meaning different leaves. This is derived from the Greek héteros (ἕτερος), meaning ‘the other of two’ or ‘different’, and from the Greek phúllon (φύλλον) meaning “leaf”.
Genus name comes form the Greek words a meaning without and Colocasia the name of a closely allied genus, form which it was separated.
Alocasia heterophylla
Alocasia heterophylla
