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Homalomena philippinensis is a tropical aroid grown for its large heart-shaped leaves, which rise about 1 m from an underground corm. It thrives in warm, humid, shaded conditions with steady moisture.
Homalomena philippinensis is a species of flowering plants in the family Araceae. It is native to the Philippines and Orchid Island in Taiwan. The plant has large heart-shaped leaves that grow up to around 1 m (3.3 ft) tall from an underground corm. It grows at low elevations usually in forests and along bodies of water. It is commonly known as payau or payaw, alupayi or alopayi, salet, or tahig, among other names.
H. philippinensis is commonly grown as an ornamental plant. The petioles of the leaves have a sweet chewing gum scent when crushed. The leaves are used in Philippine folk medicine and for wrapping food in Philippine cuisine.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Homalomena philippinensis by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
