Taro (Colocasia) is a perennial herb from the Aroid family. It is quite rare to meet perennials on personal plots in our regions. This exotic is a huge lush plant, the wide leaves of which sit on long petioles towering above the ground. For habitation, taro chooses the humid tropics, located mostly in Asia. Some perennial species also migrated to other continents.
The plant is still little known in domestic horticulture, but every year the volume of cultivated taro plantings is increasing. Mature bushes are capable of reaching human growth. In tropical countries, the tubers of the plant are used for food.
Opsyvanie plant taro
The plant's rhizome is highly branched and contains many oblong tubers on which ring-shaped bends are located. The skin of the tubers is brown. The nutritional value of taro root crops has long been proven. They have a starch reserve and a number of trace elements. Tubers are allowed to be eaten only in boiled form.
Taro is considered a stemless plant. The main advantage is a wide and lush leafy rosette of a heart-shaped or thyroid shape. Leaves, smooth to the touch, are attached to juicy thick petioles. The veins protrude over the entire surface of the plate. In some species, the veins provide a rich contrast to the main background. The predominant color of the foliage is green, but there are gray and bluish varieties. The petiole lengthens as the bushes mature. Its height often reaches one meter, and its thickness is 1-2 cm.The size of the plate is about 80 cm.
Indoor taro almost never bloom, and if this happens, the inflorescences look unattractive. In the wild, the petioles produce a strong, small peduncle with a bud inflorescence of a bright yellow or orange hue. On the pollinated ear, reddish berries filled with small grains ripen.
Taro care
Caring for taro is simple and not troublesome, if you choose the right location for planting in advance and observe the watering regime. In apartments and offices, the perennial retains its color throughout the year. Since the plant is growing rapidly, there should be as much free space as possible around the bush. Good lighting plays an important role in the development of the plant. Placing the pot in direct sunlight is not recommended.
Outdoors, the crop adapts quickly and is able to withstand high temperatures. Sunshine or light shade is equally fine for this species. The favorable temperature regime for the growth and development of perennials is + 22 ... + 26 ° C.
Taro is a moisture-loving plant, therefore it needs timely watering. It is recommended to use only settled water. The leaves should be sprayed daily.If conditions permit, containers with wet pebbles are placed next to the pot.
During the active growing season, regular feeding is carried out. Indoor species are fed 2 times a month with mineral fertilizers. The specimens that are on the street are fertilized once a month.
With the arrival of the spring heat, taro are taken out into the street, where they are left in pots or transferred to open ground. Here the bushes will enjoy the fresh air until the cold comes. After the arrow of the thermometer begins to drop below + 12 ° C, the ground parts are cut off, the tubers are dug up and stored until spring, in order to then re-plant the plant.
The transplant is rarely performed. If the rhizome grows strongly, a pot of larger diameter and capacity is selected and filled with turf, humus, peat and sand.
On a note! Taro is considered a very poisonous plant. The juice of the leaves, when it comes into contact with the skin, causes burns and redness. If you eat a piece of fresh leaf, a person may experience swelling of the throat, or a burning sensation of the mucous membrane. Such cases pose serious health problems. Therefore, planting taro in the open field should be carried out away from children and pets. The plant is used for food only after undergoing heat treatment.
Methods for breeding taro
Taro reproduces by dividing the rhizome and planting tubers. It is important to know that the juice of the stems can cause burns, as it is highly concentrated. Therefore, any measures for the care or transplantation of the culture must be done with protective gloves.
Sowing propagation, as a rule, does not give the expected results and takes a lot of time and effort. Sowing is carried out in peat pots. The embedment depth should not exceed 5 mm. The containers moistened with water are placed under a film and kept in a warm, lighted room at a temperature not lower than + 22 ... + 24 ° C. Sprouts break through after 1-3 weeks.
To get a new seedling, the tubers are separated from the adult bush and placed in wet, loose soil, covered with glass or a piece of film. After a few weeks, the tops of the seedlings are shown. After waiting 10 days, the shelter is removed.
For division, adult healthy bushes are chosen. The excavated rhizome is divided into parts, leaving 1-2 buds in each. Places of cuts are treated with charcoal. The planting of the cut is carried out in a moist peat substrate mixed with sand. Seedlings are initially kept warm. The rooting process is usually straightforward. After a couple of weeks, green leaves begin to bloom on the petioles.
Difficulties in growing taro
The main reasons for the inhibition of the growth and development of perennials are behind non-observance of the rules for caring for taro.
- With a lack of moisture, yellow leaves appear, a loss of turgor pressure occurs.
- Dry spots on the leaf blades indicate overheating of the bushes. It is best to move the pots out of the sun.
- The loss of brightness by variegated species indicates a lack of light.
Insects rarely harm the plant. However, if traces of ticks, aphids or scale insects are found, the stems and leaves must be immediately treated with insecticidal compounds.
Types and varieties of taro with photos
Taro is subdivided into 8 types. First of all, we are talking about giant plants that are bred in greenhouses or greenhouses.
Giant taro (Colocasia gigantea)
The most popular type of plant. The height of the petioles with leaves reaches about 3 meters. The dark green foliage, streaked with veins, is very durable. She sits securely on the petioles. The foliage is oval. The length of one leaf is approximately 80 cm. The thick peduncle bears an ear up to 20 cm long. Tubers resembling small turnips emerge from the roots.
Taro edible taro (Colocasia esculenta)
They are grown for forage purposes, as this species provides an abundant amount of nutritious tubers. The heaviest of them weigh about 4 kg. Treated leaves and stems are also considered edible.Heart-shaped leaves are attached to fleshy petioles up to 100 cm in height, the width of which is about 50 cm. At the edges of the foliage it looks wavy. The color of the species is light green.
- The named species laid the foundation for the breeding of the black magic variety - a dark brown plant with branched ground shoots.
Water taro (Colocasia esculenta var. Aquatilis)
It prefers to dwell along the coastal zone and easily tolerates excessive accumulation of moisture in the root part. Reddish petioles up to 1.5 m long bear green leaf blades, which are only 20 cm wide.
Deceptive taro (Colocasia fallax)
Not tall. This perennial is perfect for indoor cultivation due to its compact size.
