Elephant Foot Yam – This might be the most alien plant we have in the Garden, and it is sure to thrill your friends and family! In early summer, individual leaf stalks emerge from the ground with mottled green stems and highly lobed leaves.; by mid summer, each leaf stalk is about 5 feet tall, creating a Dr. Suess-like canopy. If you're lucky, you will also see the plant produce a large flower that looks (and smells!) like rotten meat in late spring. Truly a plant for the weirdos out there! Under the surface, the plant creates something called a corm, which is a modified plant stem that stores starches. As times goes on, this corm gets bigger and bigger, so that eventually you are left with a 3 foot wide patch of large leaf stalks. In its native habitat in southeast Asia, this corm is boiled and used as a food source, hence the name Elephant Foot Yam. In our climate, this large corm is what helps the plant survive our winter frosts, with the plant reemerging even bigger than the year prior. Plant in part shade and in well-draining soil. This plant is suprisingly drought tolerant, but appreciates some extra water in the summer.
Price range: $20.00 through $40.00
