How to De-Eye Caladium Bulbs
Caladiums are stunning in the garden, featuring large heart-shaped leaves with multi-colored shades in varying greens, reds, whites and lavenders. This tropical plant thrives in moist warm temperatures, with most fresh tubers supplying plenty of visible growth points. Occasionally, caladium tubers--sometimes referred to as bulbs--only have a single dominant eye. De-eyeing a tuber increases the growth potential for the plant and is similar to plucking the eye out of a potato. This allows for auxiliary or dormant eyes to develop and will multiply leaf production on the plant. Does this Spark an idea?
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Instructions
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Examine the caladium bulb for multiple eyes. Caladium eyes resemble the human eye, round in formation with a small pinkish circle in the middle much like a pupil. Composite tubers exhibit multiple eyes and will grow fine without performing the de-eyeing process.
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Locate the pinkish eruption on the dominant eye, most often located at the hairiest part of the bulb.
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Use a small, sharp-edged potato peeler or knife to cut out the eye. Carefully dig into the bulb approximately 1/8 to 1/4 of an inch, keeping the peeler edge within the diameter of the eye.
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Use a twisting motion with the peeler to scoop out the pink area of the dominant eye. Avoid touching or cutting any of the auxiliary buds or dormant eyes surrounding the dominant one.
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Allow the tuber to dry out with good air circulation for 12 hours before attempting to pot it. This allows the bulb to heal and will waylay potential disease problems later on with the plant.
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Tips & Warnings
The de-eyeing process forces auxiliary buds to grow as a survival mechanism on the plant.
De-eyeing a caladium delays the forcing time on the plant for a week or two, but will result in a fuller plant.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit feuille de caladium image by Unclesam from Fotolia.com
