{"product_id":"alocasia-boa","title":"Alocasia boa","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAlocasia boa\u003c\/strong\u003e is a rare elephant ear with serious sculptural intent. Long, arrow shaped leaves stand upright on their stems, each blade a deep glossy green with boldly rippled, almost serrated margins that wave along the entire edge. The stems are the other half of the show, mottled with a snakeskin pattern that gives the plant its serpentine name. It suckers freely as it matures, slowly building into a clump of upright foliage, and unlike most of the fashionable \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/alocasia\"\u003ejewel alocasias\u003c\/a\u003e this is a true species, still \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/rare-and-unusual\"\u003egenuinely scarce in cultivation\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eOrigins\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAlocasia boa was described by the aroid botanist Alistair Hay in 1991 and is accepted by Kew as a species in its own right, native to the wet tropical forests of western New Guinea. It shares its home region and its upright, wavy edged look with Alocasia lauterbachiana, and it has the same air of something ancient and reptilian about it. It stays a manageable size for an alocasia, with indoor plants typically topping out at around a metre once settled.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCare\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTreat it as a warm rainforest aroid. Give it bright, indirect light out of harsh midday sun, and water when the top few centimetres of compost have dried, keeping the mix slightly moist but never waterlogged, particularly while the plant is young. It appreciates \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/humidity-loving-houseplants\"\u003edecent humidity\u003c\/a\u003e, so a bathroom, kitchen or a spot grouped with other plants suits it well. Keep it warm all year, ideally 18 to 28C and not below about 15C, away from cold draughts. Like all alocasias it contains insoluble calcium oxalates and is toxic if eaten, so keep it out of reach of pets and children.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"GrowTropicals","offers":[{"title":"8cm","offer_id":58330587595135,"sku":"ALOCBOA8","price":34.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0361\/9645\/0348\/files\/boa.jpg?v=1789650144","url":"https:\/\/growtropicals.com\/products\/alocasia-boa","provider":"GrowTropicals","version":"1.0","type":"link"}