ALOCASIA CUCULLATA 'CRINKLES' ALBO VARIEGATED
Alocasia cucullata 'Crinkles' Albo Variegated Looking for Alocasia cucullata 'Crinkles' Albo Variegated, sometimes sold as "Alocasia triangularis"? This is a pure-white variegated form of a characterful cultivar, and one that comes with a small lesson attached. First, the name. You will often see this plant labelled Alocasia triangularis. It is worth knowing that this is not an accepted name. The latinised form makes it look like a distinct species, but 'Crinkles' is a cultivar of Alocasia cucullata, the well-loved "Buddha's Hand" or "Hooded Dwarf" Alocasia. If you have been hunting for a triangularis, this is the plant you were looking for. The cultivar itself is defined by a mutation that gives it diamond-shaped leaves, heavily ruffled and crinkled margins, and a distinctive cupped blade. The same mutation appears in Alocasia macrorrhizos 'Shock Treatment', which is a nice bit of connective knowledge for a collector: two very different-looking plants carrying the same underlying quirk. On 'Crinkles' the effect is glossy and sculptural, the deep green surface catching light along every ruffle. The albo form adds pure-white sectoral variegation to that already sculptural leaf. Because this is true albo variegation, the white carries no chlorophyll, so it reads bright and clean against the dark green, sometimes running as a bold sector up one side of the blade, sometimes breaking into finer speckling. It is chimeric and sectoral, so no two leaves and no two plants express the same way, and it cannot be guaranteed true-to-type through tissue culture. In cultivation 'Crinkles' is one of the more forgiving Alocasia, which makes the albo form a good entry point into white variegation for a collector who has found the pickier species frustrating. Give it bright, indirect light to support the variegation, keep humidity high, and water once the top of the substrate begins to dry. As it matures it sends up tall, upright petioles and builds into a sizeable clump, so it grows into a real statement plant rather than staying small. We grow ours in our own pon mix, blended from components in our Soil Ninja range, with Fluval Stratum and Rockwool Cubes as our preferred substrates for any recovery or propagation work, paired with our Corm Keeper system for reliable corm growth. Variegation: pure-white, chimeric sectoral variegation, bold sectors through to fine speckling Also sold as: "Alocasia triangularis" (not an accepted name for this cultivar) Leaf: glossy, diamond-shaped, ruffled and cupped from a natural mutation Light: bright, indirect light to support healthy variegation Humidity: high, thrives at 60% and above Growth habit: clumping cultivar of Alocasia cucullata, upright petioles, reaching a substantial size when mature Rarity: limited availability, a characterful albo for the collection A rare chance to add a pure-white 'Crinkles' to your collection, whether you have been calling it that or hunting it as "triangularis". Get in touch with the team at The Alocasia Company if you'd like advice on care or variegation stability.