In past years, A. watsoniana was seen only in botanical gardens or private collections. Only in the relatively recent past has this plant become available through tissue culture.
is related to some that grow smaller, such as and a number of the plants in the longiloba/lowii group of Alocasias. Once this plant really gets growing, though, it outpaces and outsizes all the rest of the Jewels. The leaves are like silvery-veined shields with very dark red-purple undersides. Like the other Jewels, this one shines best when temperatures are in the 80s F during the daytime, and low 70s F at nighttime, with high humidity, bright light but not direct sun, and very well-draining soil.
We water our alocasias with distilled water, as they can languish in fluoridated water.
