 Hi everybody! Look at this baby! Today we're going to be talking about the Alucacia Amazonica. Okay, coming up! I'm very happy to announce that this plant right here is actually our first Alucacia in the house. And when I was doing my research about her, I was so happy to discover that she's such an interesting plant. First of all, this plant doesn't grow naturally. She's a hybrid between the Alucacia Longiloba and the Alucacia Sandeliana. And these two are both from Asia. So why is it called the Alucacia Amazonica, you ask? Great question! She doesn't come from the Amazon. As I said, her ancestors are from Asia. But this hybrid was actually created in a plant nursery that is called Amazonica. So her name comes from the plant nursery and this plant nursery actually is in Florida. It's so cool how her name really tells her story, no? But on top of the interesting history, this plant is really beautiful. First of all, the leaves are really dark, deep green. And the veins are very light. So they contrast with the leaves strikingly. On top of that, the back of the leaf is actually purple. In terms of temperature, the ancestors of this plant come from the jungles of Asia. So the Alucacia Polly really likes high temperatures. It is recommended that we keep her in a room that is between 18 to 30 degrees Celsius. Not lower than that because she won't be happy there. And keeping with the theme of jungle and tropical plants, this Alucacia loves humidity. So just to give you an idea, they prefer to be in a space that is between 50 to 60% in humidity. And in order to provide that, I would strongly recommend investing in a humidity fire. That way you make sure that you're providing the humidity that she needs. But of course, you can also increase humidity in other ways. Like putting her on top of a humidity tray, misting her leaves very regularly, and grouping her with other tropical plants. They really tend to help each other with humidity levels. In terms of light, the Alucacia Polly likes bright indirect sunlight. This is one of the differences that I found between this Alucacia and my Calacias, for example. The Calacias love humidity, but they don't like bright sunlight. This one here actually likes bright sunlight, but not direct sunlight. Just bright indirect sunlight because if we provide direct sunlight, it will burn the leaves. So for winter, I think I'm going to put her a little bit closer to a grow light. But not too close so she doesn't get direct light. This takes us to the next topic, which is dormancy. What I've learned about this plant is that in the winter, they tend to go dormant and lose leaves. Which is completely natural, because as these plants don't get so much light in the winter, they will lose leaves and go dormant. Then when the spring and summer comes and we have more light coming in, they will wake up again. Now, we can try to prevent dormancy by providing the right amounts of light. So we can do this by bringing her closer to a window in the winter, but not too close so she doesn't get so cold or bringing a little bit more supplemental light. I would always recommend that you always check the leaves just to make sure that you're not burning them with too much light. Another thing that we can do to prevent dormancy and really make this plant happier is that we make sure that she's not too cold. So always keep her in stable temperatures between 18 to 30 degrees celsius. Anything doing these two things, we may be able to help her prevent going into dormancy. But again, if she goes into dormancy, not to worry, don't throw it out, just keep taking care of her and wait for her to naturally wake up in the spring. In terms of water, we want to keep the soil moist but not wet. So we don't want the soil to completely dry in between waterings. This is because again, this plant likes humidity, but we don't want to overwater her. So what I would recommend is that you always check the soil with your finger and once you feel that the soil is drying out a little bit, then you water. And the method that I use and I always recommend to keep the soil moist but not wet is the bottom watering method. I usually do this method with a combination from top watering as well. So I put my plants in a container and I water from the top and let the water drain down in the container through the drainage holes. Then I leave my plants there for about 10 to 15 minutes so they can absorb the water that they need and then I take them out and let the excess water drain down through the drainage holes. That way I make sure that the soil is moist but not wet. And when you're checking the soil of your plant, you will notice that in the spring and the summer, the soil will dry out quicker and hence you will have to water more often, maybe every week or so. Whereas in the winter the soil will dry out a little bit slower, especially if your plant goes into dormancy. So if this is the case, make sure to really check and you will see that you will have to water less often. As this plant likes the soil to be moist but not wet, I would recommend that you use a potting mix that has a very good drainage. So you can use an all-purpose house plant potting mix but always make sure that it comes with some pumice or perlite and if not you can add it yourself. This way the potting mix will have a very good drainage and the roots of your plant will have space to breathe and grow. It is recommended that you fertilize your alocasia poly during the growing season, which tends to be spring, summer and fall. And if you're starting to experiment with fertilizer, I would recommend that you use an organic fertilizer. This is because organic fertilizers are way less concentrated than synthetic fertilizers, so an organic fertilizer will help you prevent over fertilizing your plant and always follow the instructions on the bottle. If you feel that your plant is getting sad or maybe brownish after you start fertilizing, maybe cut back on it just to make sure. The alocasia poly is a very toxic plant. It's actually toxic to cats, dogs and humans. So I would recommend that you keep it away from pets and babies just so everyone is safe. Okay you guys, so this plant is relatively more difficult but if we follow these rules she may actually thrive. So let me know how it is for you and if you have any other tips. And as always, I will see you in the next one. Okay, ciao!