How to Plant Elephant Ear Flower Bulbs
Fast Facts
- Planting season
- Spring
- Life cycle
- Perennial
- Light
- Partial Shade
- Water needs
- High
- Planting depth
- 4 to 6 inches Deep
- Spacing
- 2 to 4 feet, 4 feet
- Mature height
- Varies by variety
- Hardiness zones
- 8 to 11
- Bloom season
- Summer through Fall
Ranges cover every variety in this group. Check the product page for the exact figures.
About Elephant Ear Flower Bulbs
Elephant Ear Flower Bulbs grow in partial shade positions. Flowering runs summer through fall. The figures below are the ones on the packets in this group; each product page carries the exact numbers for that variety.
When to plant
Plant in spring. Bulbs go in while the soil is still workable, and want to be in the ground long enough to settle before it freezes. Hardy in zones 8 to 11 — your local frost dates decide the exact week.
Where to plant
Choose a site in partial shade. Water needs are high once the plants are established. Drainage matters more than anything else: bulbs sitting in wet winter soil rot. Allow 2 to 4 feet or 4 feet between plants so air can move between them.
How to plant
Set the bulb 4 to 6 inches deep deep, pointed end up, spaced 2 to 4 feet or 4 feet apart. Water gently to settle the soil, then keep the surface evenly moist until seedlings or shoots appear.
How to care
Keep watering high, at the base of the plant rather than over the leaves. In zones 8 to 11 these come back each year: let the foliage die down naturally after flowering, since that is what feeds next season's growth. Flowers appear summer through fall; cutting or deadheading regularly keeps more coming.

