{"product_id":"colocasia-blue-hawaii","title":"Colocasia Blue Hawaii","description":"\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBred, Not Just Found\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003eColocasia Blue Hawaii isn't a wild sport or an informally traded cultivar picked up in a nursery somewhere, it's a deliberately bred selection, patented and documented from the start. The plant carries large, medium-green, arrowhead-shaped leaves up to two feet long, with purple-tinted margins and veins running through the blade, supported on semi-glossy, burgundy-colored petioles. Like most Colocasia, the leaves are peltate, with the petiole attaching to the underside of the blade rather than its edge, and they tend to angle downward rather than sitting flat, giving a mature clump real visual weight. The leaf edges hold a slight, consistent wave rather than lying flat.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eA Runner-Free Elephant Ear\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003eWild-type Colocasia esculenta spreads by sending out runners, colonizing new ground rather than staying put. Blue Hawaii was specifically bred to grow as a tidy, self-contained clump instead, without that runner habit, which makes it a more predictable choice for a defined garden bed or a container than many straight-species elephant ears.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe University of Hawaii Program Behind It\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003eBlue Hawaii was bred by John Cho through the University of Hawaii's plant breeding program, part of the patented Royal Hawaiian® series, and is documented under US Plant Patent PP20003. Beyond the runner-free habit, the breeding work specifically targeted improved disease resistance and hardiness compared to older elephant ear selections, on top of the purple-veined, wavy-edged foliage the series is known for. At maturity, plants typically reach around three feet tall with a two-foot spread.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eStraightforward, By Design\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003eGive it warm, humid conditions and moist, well-draining soil; it suits a shaded border, a large container, or the edge of a water garden equally well. Because hardiness and disease resistance were bred into this selection deliberately, it tends to be a more forgiving elephant ear to grow than many of the more experimental hybrids in this catalog.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWhat You Can Expect, By the Patent Record\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003eThis description is built from the documented characteristics of the patented cultivar rather than a photograph of ThaiFusion Botanica's own stock. ThaiFusion Botanica propagates and ships this variety directly from our nursery in Thailand, with a phytosanitary certificate included on every international order once the listing is live.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"ThaiFusion Botanica","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44993773142192,"sku":"P-CO306","price":10.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0704\/3881\/3872\/files\/4c1c2eb5-b817-413d-92b2-904a8863ff74.jpg?v=1787538158","url":"https:\/\/thaifusionbotanica.com\/products\/colocasia-blue-hawaii","provider":"ThaiFusion Botanica","version":"1.0","type":"link"}