If you are looking for a unique plant to add to your garden, look no further than Alocasia black velvet.
This tropical plant sports dark green leaves with a velvety texture that eventually gave it the name velvet.
This plant is easy to care for and is an excellent option as an indoor or outdoor plant.
Keep reading for a care guide on Alocasia Black Velvet to have a successful plant in your garden.
About Alocasia Black Velvet
Alocasia Reginula, more commonly referred to as Black Velvet, is a type of tropical plant in the same family as the Aroid.
British botanist, Nathanial Wallich, discovered the plant in Malaysia.
It has a name based on the blackness of its leaves and its velvety feel.
Black Velvet is a member of the Aracea family, which has close to 2800 species of plant within it.
The plant reaches about three feet in height and two and a half feet in width. The plant grows well in shady places and does well in moist soil.
Black Velvet is a fast growing plant, which can produce new leaves in about two weeks.
Black Velvet can produce small, showy white flowers. They typically bloom during the summer months but the flowers tend to go unnoticed beneath the leaves.
USDA Zone
Alocasia Black Velvet grows optimally in USDA zones 10 and above.
While this may only represent a small portion of the United States, parts of California down to Arizona, the southern part of Texas, and southern Florida are all USDA zones 10 and above.
Is it Poisonous
Not every plant is created equal.
There are poisonous plants, edible plants, and plants that are both. What makes a plant, poisonous?
There are a few different reasons why a plant may become poisonous.
Some plants contain chemicals that are harmful to humans if ingested; however, some plants may be poisonous simply because they contain high amounts of toxins that can harm if you come into contact with them.
As for Alocasia – this includes any varieties; including all black velvets – the leaves contain a poisonous crystal.
Heads Up! When an animal, including your pet, or a human bites into the leaf of the plant, it causes irritation and swelling to the mouth, esophagus, stomach, and intestines.
If the throat swells too much, you or a pet may have difficulty breathing.
This is why you should refer to a doctor, or pet to a vet, if you see bite marks on the leaves.
Caring for Alocasia Black Velvet
While the Alocasia black velvet is not an ideal plant to try as a beginner, a little patience and knowing how to identify the ideal conditions will help you to succeed with this plant.
It is as easy as just referring to this growing guide to help your alocasia black velvet to thrive.
Water
Although alocasia black velvet is a water-loving plant, it does NOT like to sit in water.
Since leaves hold onto moisture for the plant to use, it doesn’t need as frequent watering as you would think a water-loving plant needs.
You should observe if the soil is dry to the touch, and then water enough to wet the soil for the alocasia black velvet.
Soil
When selecting soil, you want it to be loose so it promotes healthy root growth, well draining so that the roots are not sitting! in water, and slightly acidic with a pH of 5.5 to 6.5.
For the perfect substrate for alocasia black velvet, look for a soil that has some of:
- Bark
- Coarse Sand
- Coco Coir
- Perlite
- Pumice
- Wood Chips
Sunlight
Alocasia black velvet thrives in bright, indirect light.
Make sure to keep these plants out of windowsills or in front of windows where too much sun beats down on them throughout the day.
The amount of sunlight will definitely affect the size and shape of the leaves on your alocasia black velvet.
If the plant isn’t having enough light, it will develop smaller than normal leaves and it will start reaching toward the light becoming leggy.
Too much sun will also create smaller leaves because the leaves will become damaged and won’t be able to grow.
If you notice the leaves of your alocasia black velvet starting to curl, this is your first sign that the plant is getting too much sunlight.
The curling of the leaves happens when the water that is stored in the leaves starts to dry out and the leaves do not have enough structure support.
Fertilizer
Alocasia black velvet plants do not typically require a lot of feeding.
In fact, once the soil begins to become hydrophobic indicating that nutrients need to be replenished, you can start with an all-purpose fertilizer mixed to half in strength, or even quarter in strength.
Apply this diluted fertilizer once monthly as you spring through fall. This doesn’t seem like a large quantity; however, this is all you should need to provide your plant.
Temperature and Humidity
Alocasia black velvet plants prefer warm and humid conditions.
The best temperature for these plants sits around 65 – 75 degrees Fahrenheit.
They also like the air to be humid, which you can accomplish in a number of ways.
First, you could mist your plant every day, or you could put it on a pebble tray. A pebble tray is a shallow tray filled with pebbles and water.
The water will evaporate and make the air around it more humid for your plant.
Additionally, you could find a humidifier, or move your alocasia black velvet to the bathroom (when you take a shower) to take advantage of the steam.
Pruning
There are two components of the plant you will want to snip off, however, the alocasia black velvet plant will not need as much routine pruning as other plants.
The first thing you are going to want to cut off is dead leaves.
Whenever a leaf has died, just like other plants, the alocasia black velvet will expend energy creating new leaves.
So, for the sake of the plant, you might as well cut the dead leaf off, so the energy can be used on a new leaf instead.
The other thing that should be cut are flowers.
Flowers do not bloom very often, and although this may sound like a free treat, they are not anything that looks very pretty at all.
The flowers probably feel pretty bad about not being very pretty because usually the flower hides under the big velvety leaves.
When a flower starts growing, your plant is wasting more nutrients and water keeping the flower alive, which causes less to go to the leaves, which is the goal.
Growing in a Pot
Whether you grow alocasia at the ground level or in a pot, you will have the same experience, and potentially even a simpler experience.
When planted in a pot, you can easily move the plant out of the sun, change up the landscaping in your backyard or porch, and bring another level of interest depending on the potting type (ceramic, plastic, terracotta, color, etc.).
With many other plants, you’ll be told to repot into a larger pot from six months to every year. This will provide the plant with more space to allow the roots to grow and produce a larger plant.
However, the alocasia black velvet plant should be repotted only every two years, and even then, only into a single larger pot. Alocasia plants prefer to be rootbound rather than having an extremely large pot.
When you repot the plant, it’s also a good time to remove any offshoots from the plant. Those can be planted as separate plants in their own smaller pots to expand your alocasia variety.
The alocasia black velvet should be repotted in early spring time in your area, before the growing season, but after any potential dormant phase. This way when the plant is put into the new pot, the roots will grow to fill the pot in order to support the plant!
Fixing Common Issues
These plants are pretty difficult to kill, but there are a few things that could go wrong, and here are some ways to spot those problems and fix them.
Plant Damage
Take a look at the leaves on the plant.
They will show you what the plant needs in different ways.
Brown Leaf Edges
If your house is very dry, the edges of the leaves will start to dry out having a crispy brown edge.
If this does happen, try to place a humidifier or a humidity tray beside your alocasia black velvet.
Brown Leaf Tips
If the tips of the leaves are browned, your plant has been fertilized too much.
You may think that too much of a good thing can’t be bad, but nutrient overload can cause root burn and leaf burn.
You can either choose to wait and fertilize less at the next feeding, or you could repot the plant if it begins to get worse.
Brown Spots
Brown spots indicate your plant is suffering from a fungus or pest problem.
If you don’t see a bug but are thinking it could be fungus, Make this mixture and lightly spray it on the leaves that have the problem:
- 1 gallon of water
- 1/2 teaspoon of liquid dish soap
- 1 tablespoon of baking soda
Curling Leaves
If the leaves of your Alocasia black velvet begin to curl, it may be due to receiving too much light.
If it’s in your garden, you’ll have to dig it up and find a new less sunny place to put it. If it’s in a pot, you can simply lift it up and move it to a place that receives less light than your desired one.
Yellow Leaves
If you see your dark black velvet leaves begin to turn yellow, it won’t take you long to recognize what’s happening.
This most likely means you have root rot and your roots are sitting in water.
Let the plant dry out completely and you can then determine whether you can change the soil, or lessen your watering.
Pests
Spider mites are the only pest I found that love to infest the alocasia black velvet plant, and they’re quite easy to identify.
If you notice brown spots on the midrib of the leaves of your plant, there is a high likelihood that pests are to blame.
Brown spots may be less noticeable on the dark foliage of the alocasia plants.
Spider Webs
If you look closely in the folds where the leaves are growing out of the stem, you may see some easily missed, very fine spider webs.
It may even look like mold because it is so small and fine.
There are usually two ways to prevent spider mites from falling in love with your plant in you still are thinking about it.
- The first tip stands to keep your leaves dust-free. With the velvety texture of alocasia plants, this is certainly more difficult, but using a damp cloth or rag to wipe the dust away from the leaves will make your houseplant less hospitable for the spider mites.
- Allowing for more humidity will help keep the spider mites away too! Spider mites do not like humidity, and since your alocasia black velvet loves it, let’s do double duty, allowing more to build up around your plant.
On the bright side, spider mites are highly treatable, all it takes is a little diligence.
You only need a miticide.
Just spray on your leaves and the soil around your plant.
If you cannot find a miticide or prefer to mix your own up, follow these simple steps:
- In a gallon of water, combine 1 tablespoon each of cinnamon, ground cloves, and Italian seasoning.
- Boil for 10-15 minutes.
- Once boiled, remove from the heat burner and add 1 tablespoon (minced garlic); wait for the solution to cool down completely.
- Strain.
- Add about 3 drops of liquid dish soap and then pour into a spray bottle.
- Shake the container until the contents are mixed well.
- Then, spray the mixture onto the bottoms of leaves every couple of days until mites no longer remain on your plant.
Final Thoughts
The Alocasia black velvet is a stunning and unique life form that grows in tropical rain forests.
It has large dark green leaves with prominent veins that run the length of the leaf, which are also violet, hence its name.
The leaves are soft to the touch and may be felt in your eyes, and it beautiful sleek appearance is great addition to any indoor or outdoor space.
This plant will supplement anyone in growing houseplants for the first time or a seasoned plant owner.
With the appropriate of water, light, and fertilizer, you can have your very own beautiful velvety plant in your own house.