Alocasia Frydek Variegated is a pretty rare plant to come across. Unfortunately, the variegation is unstable, making it hard to have a plant that keeps its stunning variegation.
Though they aren’t necessarily high maintenance, they are picky and need specific habitat requirements. When you get past the care, they are interesting, as the length of the petioles on your plant depends greatly on the amount of light you provide.
So how do you take care of this picky plant? To take care of the Alocasia Frydek Variegated, you must provide bright, indirect sunlight, humidity, balanced fertilizer, and moist, well-draining soil that is slightly acidic. They are pretty fussy with water and want their soil to stay moist, but they do not want to sit in water. They cannot handle drought well at all.
Sunlight is a close second. Without the right amount of sunlight, your Variegated Alocasia Frydek will drop leaves without warning. Most plants will show droopy leaves that may lose variegation, but not Alocasia.
Is Alocasia Frydek Hard to Care For?
Alocasia Frydeks and Variegated Alocasia Frydeks are both plants that are considered very difficult to keep happy. They are not recommended for beginners. Sometimes, even casual plant growers may struggle with any Alocasia.
Their watering requirements are one of the biggest reasons they are complex plants. Despite having many properties reminiscent of a succulent, they can’t handle drought. However, they also don’t want to be too wet and will struggle if they don’t get to dry out properly.
They are also very fragile and can break easily, especially when propagating them. Finally, without the right amount of sunlight, they will start to drop leaves, often without warning.
Is Alocasia Frydek Variegated High Maintenance?
Since they are hard to take care of, you would expect them to be high maintenance. However, they are considered relatively low maintenance. Though they have particular requirements, once those basic requirements are met, they don’t need much care.
How Often Should I Water My Variegated Frydek?
Variegated Frydeks have specific water requirements. For that reason, these plants don’t work with a watering schedule. Since they can’t stand being dry, if you follow a watering schedule and have a hot day where the soil dries out faster, you may find that your plant needs to be watered sooner than normal.
For that reason, we recommend getting a moisture meter. They allow you to keep an eye on the soil to ensure it isn’t dry. You can also check it daily by simply sticking your finger in the soil. As long as the top two inches (5 cm) aren’t dry, it doesn’t need to be altered.
They usually don’t need a lot of water, either. Usually, a cup or so throughout the week is plenty. For Alocasia Frydek, we recommend using a planter with drainage holes. That way, you can simply soak the plant when it gets dry and allow all the excess water to drain out.
Should You Water Alocasia Frydek Variegated From the Bottom?
Bottom watering is the recommended way to water your Alocasia Frydek and Alocasia Frydek Variegated. This allows the soil to pull in the right amount of water. Then, you can leave it in a dry area or with a drip tray underneath, so any excess or unneeded water can drain back out.
You must empty your drip tray after it has time to drain out so that the soil isn’t sitting in the water and can dry out. Bottom watering is the best way to water many plants, so it is good practice to get in anyway.
Alocasia Frydek Variegated isn’t picky about its water, so tap water, filtered water, or distilled water is fine. Sometimes, the particles in the water can affect the pH, so make sure you check occasionally to ensure the soil’s pH is still ideal. Alocasia Frydek Variegated prefers to have slightly acidic soil around 5.5 to 6.5.
Should I Mist Alocasia Frydek Variegated?
Alocasia needs a lot of humidity, so daily misting is highly recommended. However, if that is too much work for a busy plant parent, you can also look into getting a humidifier for the room your Alocasia is located in. There are also pebble trays and other tricks to increase the humidity, so your plant is happy.
Where Should I Put My Alocasia Frydek Variegated?
Since the plant is variegated, it often needs more sun than the regular version of the plant. This is because, in the white areas, there is no chlorophyll, which means that the plant cannot absorb sunlight in those areas. To make up for this lack of efficiency, the plant needs to be given more sunlight.
Otherwise, the plant will often lose variegation and turn back to green to make the most of the light it is given. However, Alocasia Frydek Variegated is picky and temperamental. They will drop their leaves if they aren’t given enough sunlight.
Too much sun can also cause the leaves to burn, so you can’t just give them unlimited sunlight. The best option for Alocasia Frydek Variegated is to provide them with plenty of bright but indirect sunlight. You can do this by placing them near the window with a sheer curtain that still lets in light, but not directly, or keeping them about 3 feet (1 m) away from the window, so the sun doesn’t hit them directly.
A south-facing window is best to provide the maximum amount of light.
Alocasia Frydek Variegated Care
On top of their water, light, and misting requirements, you also have to consider things like fertilization and soil.
Often, Alocasia Frydek doesn’t need to be fertilized. The potting mix recommended for this plant has all of the nutrients the plant needs, so as long as you re-pot yearly, there is no need for new fertilizer. However, some people find that their plant is happier with more fertilizer. If you think your plant isn’t getting enough, there are certain fertilizers you can look at.
Most importantly, you want an even ratio of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium (NPK). A 20-20-20 mixture is ideal. Liquid fertilizer is highly recommended as it allows your plant to spread all the nutrients it needs evenly around the soil. When the plant is growing, you can add fertilizer about once a month. During the months when it isn’t growing, fall and winter, don’t fertilize at all.
As for soil, Alocasia Frydek Variegated does best in well-draining soil. You want it to have a lot of material in the mix, including coconut coir, perlite, or vermiculite. You can either make your own soil or buy potting soil and add some perlite to it. Preferably, you want to keep the pH around 5.5 to 6.5 to promote growth.
How Do You Encourage Variegation in Alocasia Frydek?
Variegation in Alocasia Frydek is highly unstable. For that reason, it is hard to encourage variegation in the plant. Some leaves may be entirely green, others all white, and some might be a mixture. A lot of this is due to randomness.
However, the best way to promote variegation is to ensure your Alocasia is getting plenty of sun. Too little sun and your Alocasia will likely turn more green to get enough energy from sunlight.
While it won’t guarantee variegation, it does make variegation much more likely.
Summary
To take care of the Alocasia Frydek Variegated, you need to keep its light, humidity, fertilizer, and soil requirements in mind at all times, but water is most important.
Now that you know the specific requirements of the Alocasia Frydek Variegated, you may be ready to start taking care of them. At first, it may take a lot of work to figure out what your plant needs, but over time and with experience, you will start to get an idea of what this plant is looking for.
While the variegation is highly unstable, they are still beautiful plants, no matter what. All they need is the right amount of sunlight, water, and humidity, and your plant will be ready to grow and thrive.