Cultivation of a Dioscorea Elephantipes.

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mikethecactusguy
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Re: Cultivation of a Dioscorea Elephantipes.

Post by mikethecactusguy »

This is my Dioscorea Mexicana. This current vine has been around for 9 months now. At one point it had grown long and full enough to fill the upper west portion of the greenhouse.
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A few months ago portions of the vine started die off and I would cut them back. 2 Weeks ago I cut the vine back to just were it was poking through the upper shelf. The cut end is visible in this picture.
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About 3 days later I noticed a vine staring to grow just below the cut portion. Today this is how much that vine has progressed. . Almost overnight, at least 3 feet of growth. It's wrapped itself around the pull chain for the ceiling light. It just keeps on going.
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Mike The Cactus Guy
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Re: Cultivation of a Dioscorea Elephantipes.

Post by mikethecactusguy »

A comparison of 2 1/2 yrs of growth. My first Elephantipes from August 2019 and today.
This is a 6" square pot
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This is a 12" round bowl.
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Color has changed to grey from the brown.
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Re: Cultivation of a Dioscorea Elephantipes.

Post by jerrytheplater »

mikethecactusguy wrote: Fri Apr 15, 2022 12:24 am A comparison of 2 1/2 yrs of growth. My first Elephantipes from August 2019 and today.
This is a 6" square pot
IMG_20190814_151326.jpg

This is a 12" round bowl.
20220414_170147.jpg
Color has changed to grey from the brown.
Mike, did you intend to show a side by side photo of the growth of your D. elephantipes? I only see two photo's-square and round.

Edit: Cancel the above. It just dawned on me that you had to up the container size. I was looking for the same plant (but bigger) in the same container.
Jerry Smith
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45 inches (114 cm) rain equivalent per year, approx. evenly spread per month
2012 USDA Hardiness Zone 6b: -5F to OF (-20C to -18C) min.
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Re: Cultivation of a Dioscorea Elephantipes.

Post by mikethecactusguy »

yes.. bigger plant... bigger pot....
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Re: Cultivation of a Dioscorea Elephantipes.

Post by PseudolithosLover »

oooo caudex
Trade with me :) Always looking to expand my collection! :D
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Re: Cultivation of a Dioscorea Elephantipes.

Post by mikethecactusguy »

My oldest Elephantipes has decided to take a rest.
The Mexicana has found the roof vent and is exploring the outside.
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Re: Cultivation of a Dioscorea Elephantipes.

Post by mikethecactusguy »

Yes its been quit awhile since I updated here. Last years heat wave killed 6 of the small plants. Except for the large Mexicana, the other survivors have basically limped along. The smallest went dormant somewhere in May and the others have produced somewhat stunted vines. Time for an update. My original Elephantipes that started this thread went dormant 3 months ago. This is the longest period with no new growth. This morning I was rewarded with this new growth. Time to water again.
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It looks to be a nice thick vine starting.
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Re: Cultivation of a Dioscorea Elephantipes.

Post by mikethecactusguy »

Here are some current shots of the other plants. They all look sad right now. The Mexicana is still active so its watered once a week. The other get some water every 2 weeks.
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Re: Cultivation of a Dioscorea Elephantipes.

Post by mikethecactusguy »

How about a side by side showing it from the the start to today
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I never realized how tall the facets were becoming.
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Re: Cultivation of a Dioscorea Elephantipes.

Post by mikethecactusguy »

Another comparison of the smaller elephantipes and how it has changed over a few yrs.
here it is about 3 yrs ago
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And then now.
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Its lost some of its symmetry and the faceting is deeper.
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Re: Cultivation of a Dioscorea Elephantipes.

Post by mikethecactusguy »

Day #3 Growth.. let the fun begin.
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Re: Cultivation of a Dioscorea Elephantipes.

Post by bbarv »

mikethecactusguy wrote: Tue Aug 02, 2022 2:42 pm Here are some current shots of the other plants. They all look sad right now……
They did not look sad, they were just ‘Sleeping Beauties’ and now they are waking up one by one. :D
Love the side by side shots, nice progress
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Re: Cultivation of a Dioscorea Elephantipes.

Post by mikethecactusguy »

It is pretty cool with a slow growing plant going back a few yrs and seeing the progress.
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Re: Cultivation of a Dioscorea Elephantipes.

Post by mikethecactusguy »

I finally have some good activity. 5 days after the last posting
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Re: Cultivation of a Dioscorea Elephantipes.

Post by mikethecactusguy »

A nice closeup of the caudex, striations and vine progress from today
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