Houseplant · Araceae
Alocasia 'Polly'
Alocasia × amazonica 'Polly'
Give it warmth, humidity, and bright indirect light, and the African mask plant unfurls deep bronze-green, white-veined arrowhead leaves.
Bright indirect
USDA 10–12
1–4 ft · 0.3–1.2 m
Overview
Alocasia 'Polly', sold as the African mask plant, is all about the leaf. Each one is a glossy, arrowhead-shaped blade in deep bronze-green so dark it can look near-black in low light, its surface catching the light with a faint sheen. The edges ripple in a soft, repeating wave, and a tracery of thick white veins runs from the central rib out to every point and lobe, standing out against the dark like brushwork.
It belongs to the Araceae family, an indoor-bred hybrid that holds its leaves up and outward on slender upright stems. The whole plant keeps a compact, upright shape, reaching about 2 feet tall, with each new blade pushing up tightly furled before it opens. The veins themselves run pale white to a soft silver, raised just enough to feel under a fingertip, while the blade has a stiff, leathery thickness rather than a soft droop.
Through winter the look changes. As the light fades, the plant slips into semi-dormancy and the dark blades yellow and fall one by one, until the upright stems may stand nearly bare. Below the surface the rhizome stays firm, and fresh furled leaves push up again once spring watering returns, each one opening to the same veined, wavy-edged form.
Care
The short version: give it bright indirect light, soil kept evenly moist but never soggy, warmth above 60°F (15.6°C) all year, and humidity higher than the average room. Ease off the water through winter while it rests.
Light
Give it bright, indirect light, the kind near an east window or set back from a brighter one. It takes some partial shade or gentle sun, but hard direct sun scorches the dark blades and deep shade leaves the plant pale and leggy with stretched, weakly colored leaves.
Water
Keep the soil evenly moist but never soggy through the growing season, letting the surface dry slightly between waterings. Cut back hard in winter while the plant rests, since standing wet rots the roots brown and softens the stem base, the fastest way to lose it.
Soil
Plant it in rich, loamy soil that holds moisture yet drains freely, with plenty of organic matter worked through. It takes a pH anywhere from 5.5 to 7.5, but a mix that stays waterlogged will rot the roots beneath those blades.
Temperature
Warmth matters all year. Keep it above 60°F (15.6°C) and clear of cold drafts and chilly panes. Below about 50°F (10°C) the blades yellow into early dormancy and the plant can take damage.
Humidity
This high-humidity tropical answers dry indoor air with brown, crisp leaf edges along its wavy rims. Raise the moisture with a humidifier, a pebble tray, or a cluster of plants, and keep it away from heating vents.
Feeding
Feed with a balanced houseplant fertilizer through spring and summer while the plant pushes out new blades. Stop entirely in winter, when it rests and is not putting on growth.
Pruning
Trim away yellowed, damaged, or spent leaves right at the base as they appear. Heading into winter indoors, you can cut the plant back to just the top one or two leaves as it slips into dormancy.
Repotting
Repot every 1 to 2 years, or sooner once roots circle the pot, offsets crowd the surface, or the soil dries unusually fast. Keep it potted year-round rather than lifting and storing it as a bare corm.
Overwintering
Bring it indoors before the first fall frost and expect semi-dormancy, with the dark blades dropping. Keep it on the drier side, cut back to the top leaf or two, and resume watering and feeding when fresh leaves push up in spring.
Size & spacing
Indoors it stays compact and upright, standing 1 to 4 feet (30 to 120 cm) tall with a spread of 12 to 24 inches (30 to 60 cm). Give it room to hold its blades out flat without crowding a shelf or its neighbors.
Troubleshooting
Most trouble with this plant shows up first on the blades and at the base of the stems, so read them closely. The color of the leaf, the feel of its edges, and the firmness of the stem base each tell you whether the watering is heavy, the air is too dry, or something is feeding on it. Match what you see below and act before it spreads.
Sagging blades above a stem base gone soft to the touch
Drooping leaves above a stem base that has gone soft and squashy mark root and stem rot, brought on by overwatering or soil that holds water. The roots that should feel firm and look white turn brown and slick, and the once sturdy stem base collapses under a light pinch. Stop watering, draw the plant from its pot, cut away every brown, slimy root, and set it into fresh, free-draining mix in a pot with a drainage hole.
Fix:
- Stop watering and allow the soil to dry appropriately
- Remove the plant, cut away rotted roots/tissue, and repot into fresh, well-drained mix
- Ensure the pot has drainage and discard standing water
Pale flecks, fine webbing, or fuzzy white deposits on the blades
Tiny marks and films on the glossy blades give sap-feeding pests away. Pale flecks under a haze of fine webbing point to spider mites, which spread when the air is dry; soft white cottony tufts tucked into the leaf joints are mealybugs, and clustered soft bodies leaving a sticky shine are aphids. Rinse the leaves, wipe the pests off the surface, treat with insecticidal soap or horticultural oil, and keep the plant apart from the others until the foliage reads clean.
Fix:
- Rinse foliage and wipe off pests
- Treat with insecticidal soap or horticultural oil, repeating as needed
- Isolate affected plants to limit spread
Leaves dropping as the days get shorter
Those bronze-green blades letting go in the cold are a sign of winter semi-dormancy, not death. As light thins and the room cools, the plant draws back and the leaves fall, yet down in the soil the rhizome stays plump and firm to the touch. Ease off the water, leave the top leaf or two on the stem, keep it warm and bright, and new blades unfurl once spring watering returns.
Fix:
- Reduce watering and keep the plant on the drier side while semi-dormant
- Cut back all but the top one or two leaves
- Keep in a warm, bright location and avoid cold drafts
- Resume regular watering and fertilizing when growth resumes in spring
Leaf rims browning and turning brittle around a still-green center
When the wavy rim and pointed tips of a leaf turn brown and brittle while the middle holds its green, dry air is the cause, and this high-humidity tropical feels it sharply. The browning bites hardest beside heat vents and through winter, once indoor air loses its moisture. Lift the humidity with a humidifier, a pebble tray, or a cluster of plants, keep the soil evenly damp, and move it clear of drafts and radiators.
Fix:
- Raise ambient humidity (group plants, use a humidifier or pebble tray)
- Keep soil evenly moist during active growth
- Move away from heating vents and cold drafts
Toxicity
For all its good looks, this is a genuinely toxic plant. Every part holds insoluble calcium oxalate crystals, sharp microscopic needles that burn the mouth and throat the moment they are chewed, and the sap can leave bare skin red and irritated. Keep it well away from pets, livestock, and children, and wash your hands after handling it.
Toxic to
Cats · Dogs · Horses · Rabbits · Livestock · Birds · People
Cats Moderate
A cat that bites into a leaf meets the calcium oxalate crystals at once, and the mouth burns. Heavy drooling, pawing at the face, vomiting, and trouble swallowing follow.
Dogs Moderate
A dog that chews any part feels intense oral pain, drools, and vomits almost at once. The mouth, tongue, and lips can swell, which makes swallowing hard.
Horses Moderate
The same crystals irritate a horse's mouth and throat, leaving it drooling with painful, swollen lips and tongue. Horses cannot vomit, so the discomfort stays until it passes.
Rabbits Toxic
The crystals make these leaves a poor, painful thing for a rabbit to nibble, sparking mouth irritation, drooling, and a refusal to eat. Keep the plant well out of reach.
Livestock Toxic
When cattle, goats, or sheep graze on these leaves, the crystals scorch the mouth, set saliva streaming, and leave the tongue swollen and sore. Animals in that state go off their feed.
Birds Toxic
A curious bird that pecks at the leaves meets the same stinging crystals, with mouth irritation and drooling the likely result. There is no upside to letting a bird near it.
People Caution
Every part of the plant is inedible, and biting into a leaf sends a hot, needling burn across the tongue and throat. Skin brushed with the sap can flush red and start itching too, so wash up after touching it and keep the plant beyond the reach of small children.
All parts contain insoluble calcium oxalate crystals; sap can cause contact dermatitis. Wash hands after handling and keep away from pets and children
Helpline numbers
United States
ASPCA Animal Poison Control: (888) 426-4435 (fee applies)
Poison Control: (800) 222-1222
Canada
Poison Centres: 1-844-764-7669
Varieties
What sells as 'Polly' is one cultivar of a single hybrid, and a close relative under the same parentage turns up now and then. These are the names worth knowing.
Alocasia × amazonica 'Polly'
This is the compact form most people grow, reaching about 2 feet tall, its leathery arrowhead leaves a dark bronze-green with rippling wavy edges and thick white to silvery veins that stand right out.
Alocasia × amazonica 'Boa'
Another cultivar of the same hybrid, recorded in the Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder alongside 'Polly'.
How to propagate
You do not raise this one from seed at home. Instead you split the plant, drawing on the small pups it pushes up around its base, which is simplest at repotting time in the warmer months.
DivisionModerate
Spring to summer, at repotting · Several weeks
The easiest way to make more is to divide the plant at repotting in spring or summer. It grows from a thick rhizome and pushes up small pups around its base, so ease the clump apart and pot up each piece with roots of its own. Give the divisions several weeks of warmth and steady moisture to settle before new blades appear.
Offsets & pupsModerate
Spring to summer · Several weeks
A rooted offset can also be eased off the parent clump in spring or summer and grown on in its own pot. Each pup sinks roots and finds its footing across several weeks, so keep it warm and lightly moist while it establishes.
Myths
An Alocasia 'Polly' standing bare after its winter leaf drop has died and cannot come back.
A plant stripped of every arrowhead blade over winter has simply gone into its seasonal rest, not died. Tip it out of the pot and feel the rhizome before giving up on it. A rhizome that is still plump and firm will push fresh leaves once warmth and watering return in spring.