Colocasia is a genus of flowering plants in the family Araceae, native to southeastern Asia and the Indian subcontinent. Some species are widely cultivated and naturalized in other tropical and subtropical regions.
Colocasia
Elephant ear plant with yellow blossom
Elephant ear plant with blossom
C. esculenta corms
The Araceae are a family of monocotyledonous flowering plants in which flowers are borne on a type of inflorescence called a spadix. The spadix is usually accompanied by, and sometimes partially enclosed in, a spathe. Also known as the arum family, members are often colloquially known as aroids. This family of 140 genera and about 4,075 known species is most diverse in the New World tropics, although also distributed in the Old World tropics and northern temperate regions.
Araceae
Snake lily (Dracunculus vulgaris) in Crete
Arrowleaf elephant ear (Xanthosoma sagittifolium), clearly showing the characteristic spadix and spathe
The cuckoo-pint or lords and ladies (Arum maculatum) is a common arum in British woodlands.