Alocasia Nebula is native to the rainforests of Asia and Australia. It is a beautiful elephant ear variety that is now loved by many as an indoor plant. Alocasia Nebula is captivating with its intense green heart-shaped leaves.
Let’s explore how to care for your Alocasia Nebula to keep your plant healthy and happy.
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Alocasia Nebula “Imperialis”
The most common variety of the Alocasia Nebula is the Alocasia Nebula Imperialis.
This plant needs intensive care, so it is important to consider if you have the time and skill set to appropriately care for it before acquiring one.
Soil
Since this lush plant is native to the rainforest, where organic debris would easily fall to the forest floor, it needs to have nutrient-dense soil. Any indoor potting mix will do. You can add components such as compost or manure to up the nutrient levels of your soil. You should ensure that whatever you add to your soil is well decomposed first so as not to spread disease to your beloved plant.
It is also important to ensure that the soil is well draining. You can ensure that your soil is well draining by adding things such as coarse sand or perlite.
It is recommended to keep the soil of your Alocasia nebula Imperialis slightly wet. It should mimic a constantly humid rainforest environment. Instead of giving it a bunch of water at one time, try giving it smaller amounts of water more frequently.
Light
Since this plant is naturally found towards the bottom of the rainforest canopy, it receives all the light filtered through the rest of the trees. The lush dark green leaves likely came about as an effort to compete for more light from the bottom of the rainforest.
Therefore, we can assume that your Alocasia Nebula Imperialis loves bright filtered light.
However, it is important to find a comfortable balance of light with this plant since too much light will leave you with burnt leaves. If you notice that the leaves on your Alocasia Imperial Red look scorched, move it into a more comfortable light situation. If you notice that your leaves are losing color, try moving them into more light.
Humidity
Since you can naturally find this plant in the dense and humid rainforest, we can assume that the Alocasia nebula Imperialis loves humidity.
It is recommended to keep the humidity of this plant between 60% and 80%.
These high humidity requirements for this luscious plant make the Alocasia Nebula Imperialis a perfect contender to keep in a more humid room such as the bathroom or kitchen.
You could use a mister to keep this plant humid.
Another option is to keep the plant’s pot resting on stones with water underneath them.
Temperature
Since this plant is from a warm tropical rainforest, it also loves a warm environment indoors.
Your Alocasia Nebula will enjoy any temperature range from around 60 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit. The most common rule of thumb is that if you are warm and comfortable in a room, your Alocasia Nebula will be too.
Repotting
If you notice more roots than soil in your pot, it may be time to repot your plant.
Repotting your Alocasia nebula will give your plant more room to grow and thrive.
Only consider repotting your plant during the summer and spring months since your plant will not want to be transplanted during its dormant phase during winter.
Choose a pot that is slightly larger than its previous pot to allow for more growth.
Fertilizer
Your Alocasia Nebula Imperialis does not require much fertilizer if you are keeping the soil rich with nutrient-dense material.
If you start to notice the leaves of your plant wilting in between waterings, it may be a sign that your plant could benefit from fertilizer.
If you choose to add fertilizer, only add fertilizer during the warmth of the spring and summer months when the plant can use the added nutrients to grow. If you add fertilizer to your plant during the winter months, the plant will be dormant and have no use for the added nutrients.
Alocasia Nebula Imperialis Size
Although it can grow to a much bigger size in its natural rainforest environment where light, nutrients, and water are abundant, it can grow to be about 70 to 90 cm in height and 50 cm wide.
Alocasia Nebula Imperialis Mature
Once mature, your Alocasia nebula Imperialis will grow larger leaves up to 17 cm in size. It will be easier to repot and propagate once your plant has matured.
Alocasia Nebula Propagation
It is important to understand how to propagate your Alocasia nebula so that your baby plants can thrive.
The Alocasia Nebula can be propagated quite easily using its bulbs and rhizomes.
Only propagate your Alocasia Nebula during the warmth of the spring and summer to optimize the survival of your new plant. If you propagate your plant during the winter, the plant will be dormant and not want to grow.
To propagate this lovely plant, loosen the soil around the base of the plant where the roots are and carefully remove the plant from the pot. You can now wash off the bulbs to see them better. A bulb will look like swelling of the roots.
Next, use a sterilized knife or scissors to separate a bulb from the rest of the roots.
Once your bulb is free, please place it in a new pot with soil and a well-lit place.
You should begin to see a new sprout within a month. Make sure your mother plant is comfortable again as well.
Comparing Alocasia Nebula
The Alocasia nebula shares a family with all other Alocasia plants.
Plants of this family share the common characteristic of wide elephant ear-shaped leaves but are actually unique from one another.
Let’s explore similarities and differences between plants commonly connected to the Alocasia Nebula.
Alocasia Nebula vs. Silver Dragon
The Alocasia Nebula can often be confused with the Silver Dragon. Although the two plants are similar, there are also subtle differences.
As for similarities, both the Alocasia Nebula and the Silver Dragon are members of the elephant ear family with wide lush leaves that have a point at the end. They both share a height of around 90 cm and have similar requirements as far as soil, light, humidity, and temperature go.
You can primarily find their differences aesthetically.
While the Alocasia Nebula has dark green leaves with even darker green veins contrasting with a lighter green background, the Silver Dragon creates a stronger contrast between the two colors with its dark green veins and light silver background.
The Alocasia silver dragon really rings true to its name with the silver leaves with green accents that other Alocasias cannot recreate.
Alocasia Nebula vs. Dragon Scale
The more common Alocasia Nebula can also be confused with the elusive dragon scale. While they look similar, their distinct differences make them unique from one another.
Although they share a similar background and care needs, the most striking difference is the detail on the leaves of the dragon scale. Compared with the Alocasia Nebula, the Dragon Scale looks like a true work of art, contrasting the dark green of the veins accentuating the light green, creating almost glowing scale-type patterns.
It is no surprise that this plant earned the name Dragon Scale with its distinct patterns and shaping.
The Alocasia Nebula, on the other hand, while still beautiful, has an overall darker shade that blends more and loses the strikingness that the dragon scale possesses, from the color contrast of leaf to vein color.
Alocasia Nebula vs Alocasia Reginae
The Alocasia nebula is also commonly compared to the Alocasia Reginae.
Since they both come from the Alocasia family, they share the characteristic of having these wide, lush elephant ear leaves. They also share similar care practices regarding light, temperature, humidity, and soil.
You can admire their uniqueness by acknowledging their differences.
While the Alocasia Nebula is a relatively large plant growing to around 70 cm tall, the Alocasia Reginae is a relatively small plant, only growing to be about 25 cm.
The leaves are held more upright on an Alocasia Reginae than on an Alocasia Nebula.
The most prominent difference, however, can be observed in the leaf color. While the leaf color of the Alocasia Nebula is greyish green, the leaves of the Alocasia Reginae are a deep blue-grey with even darker veining. The backs of the leaves are a rich deep red purple.
Alocasia Nebula vs. Alocasia Bisma
The Alocasia Nebula is also commonly compared to the Alocasia Bisma since they both come from the elephant-eared family.
While they share similar soil, humidity, light, and temperature requirements, these plants are unique from one another.
The Alocasia Nebula can grow much taller than an Alocasia Bisma.
The easiest way to tell these two plants apart from one another is the shape of the leaves. The leaves of the Alocasia Bisma are slightly more elongated than the leaves of the Alocasia Nebula. The leaves of the Alocasia Nebula are significantly rounder than those of the Alocasia Bisma.
The Alocasia Nebula also has a more distinct contrast between the vein and leaf color than the Alocasia Bisma. The Alocasia Bisma has more of a uniform light green across the leaf without the changing color of the vein, which creates a nice contrast to the leaf of the Alocasia Nebula.
Conclusion
The Alocasia nebula is a wonderful houseplant that requires significant attention and care.
Although it shares many characteristics with other plants, the size and distinctive color contrast between the leaf color and veins set Alocasia Nebula apart from the rest.
Where to Buy Alocasia Nebula
If you are interested in owning your own Alocasia Nebula or want to check the price, the Alocasia Nebula is available for sale from different sellers on Amazon or Etsy.
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