Cold hardiness & minimum temperature

Is Elephant's Foot (Dioscorea elephantipes)cold hardy? Hardiness zone & min temp

Also called Elephant's Foot, Tortoise Plant, Hottentot Bread, Turtle Shell Plant.

More about elephant's foot

About Elephant's Foot

Dioscorea elephantipes · also called Elephant's Foot, Tortoise Plant · houseplant

A remarkable South African caudiciform with a corky, geometric-patterned caudex resembling an elephant's foot or tortoise shell. Thin twining vines bearing heart-shaped leaves emerge seasonally, dying back to the caudex in summer dormancy. A slow-growing conversation piece for bright indoor spots with very infrequent watering and a mandatory summer dry period.

Cold limit: USDA 9a–11b · RHS H1b (18–24°C (growing season); min. 10°C in dormancy)

Watch for — Slow or no vine growth: A caudex that fails to push new vines may be too warm or bright during its dormancy, kept in too dark a position during growth, or severely overwatered. Ensure a distinct warm-dry summer rest and a bright-cool-moist winter growing period.

What elephant's foot's hardiness rating actually means

Elephant's Foot is not cold hardy. It is a tropical houseplant that dies if it is left out through frost — there is no zone where it overwinters outdoors in a UK or cold-US climate. Its RHS rating of H1b means: Sub-tropical — a normal warm home is fine, but it cannot go outside in a cool season. On the US scale that maps to USDA 9a–11b — the zones where it can be left outdoors year-round.

New to these scales? The USDA hardiness zone map explained covers how the zone numbers work, and you can find your own zone with the zone finder.

Minimum temperature — and what happens below it

Minimum survivable temperature is roughly about 10 °C (sustained cold below this is damaging). Elephant's Foot has no frost tolerance at all — it is an indoor plant in any climate with a real winter.

Concretely, for elephant's foot as it gets too cold:

Below about about 10 °C, growth stalls and the leaves start to show cold stress — dark, water-soaked, or yellowing patches.
A single light frost blackens the foliage; a hard freeze kills the whole plant, roots included, and it does not recover.
Even a cold, draughty windowsill or an unheated porch in winter can be enough to damage it permanently.

Can elephant's foot go outside or overwinter — and where?

It can holiday outdoors in summer once nights are reliably above 10 °C, in shade or dappled light, hardened off gradually.
Bring it back indoors well before the first autumn frost — do not wait for a frost warning, move it when nights drop toward 10-12 °C.
It will never overwinter outside in a temperate climate; the indoors is its winter home, full stop.

Work back from your local frost dates with the frost-date calculator: the last spring frost and first autumn frost are what really decide when elephant's foot can be outside. US growers can check USDA zones; UK growers should use the RHS hardiness ratings, which match the H1b figure above.

Elephant's Foot hardiness — frequently asked questions

Is elephant's foot cold hardy?

Elephant's Foot is not cold hardy. It is a tropical houseplant that dies if it is left out through frost — there is no zone where it overwinters outdoors in a UK or cold-US climate. Indoor-only in almost every home. Elephant's Foot can only live outside year-round in genuinely frost-free climates (roughly USDA 9a–11b); everywhere else it is a houseplant that summers out at most.

What is the minimum temperature elephant's foot can survive?

What hardiness zone is elephant's foot?

Elephant's Foot is rated USDA 9a–11b and RHS H1b — Sub-tropical — a normal warm home is fine, but it cannot go outside in a cool season.

Can elephant's foot survive winter outside?

It can holiday outdoors in summer once nights are reliably above 10 °C, in shade or dappled light, hardened off gradually. Bring it back indoors well before the first autumn frost — do not wait for a frost warning, move it when nights drop toward 10-12 °C. It will never overwinter outside in a temperate climate; the indoors is its winter home, full stop.

What happens to elephant's foot below its minimum temperature?

Below about about 10 °C, growth stalls and the leaves start to show cold stress — dark, water-soaked, or yellowing patches. A single light frost blackens the foliage; a hard freeze kills the whole plant, roots included, and it does not recover. Even a cold, draughty windowsill or an unheated porch in winter can be enough to damage it permanently.