My 2nd question is: How does one prepare Taro to eat? I was thinking that I could grow this Taro in the summer/fall and then harvest it for food, thus avoiding the complication of wintering it.

Any response would be appreciated.
jroot@mgl.ca

One of the big Asian markets in Houston sells stems of the
violet stemmed taro. They cut off the leaves and sell them
separately, but enough of the tuber is left that if you put them in water for a few days, they sprout and grow.

NancyAnn

Are you near a Wal-Mart Super Center? (they have the groceries)

They will carry all that stuff. And you can always trade for the seeds/plants.

:)

A fun plant for ponds, kids and just those folks who enjoy novelties.

For those of you who live in zone 5b, do they make roots that you have been able to harvest? How long does it take for them to make edible roots? When would you harvest them? When is it optimal to use the stems for eating? Do you leave them in the ground all winter?

Thanks,
GA

There are many sites regarding Taro, I have put one in the link, but do a google search. they are beautiful, and edible
Lilly

Am I on the right track? This is the first year of doing so.

Scott

However, I did have some 32 inch leaves on my Taro purchased from A & P, so I decided that that is the better buy, and will go back there next year for more. I was away this fall, and early frost really clobbered my Taro anyway.

I would not eat the Elephant Ears however similar they appear. Perhaps someone else can add to this exciting conversation.

I have digestion problems with acidic stomomach. I read that they put taro in baby food because it is easy to digest.

I like poi with lomi salmon and taro chips sounds good.
Thanks guys.
Caroline

It's true that taro is full of oxylate crystals that cause irritation and itching unless the taro (leaves and root) are fully cooked. The leaves are delicious when harvest young and cooked like spinach. They are used to make lau lau. The leaves are cooked, then wrapped around pieces of butterfish, pork and shrimp, then wrapped in ti leaves and cooked in an imu or underground oven.

Buying taro leaf
Available in many varieties, the two most commonly found are the green stemmed and the purple stemmed. The purple one is generally much more expensive than the green, and is also much more difficult to obtain.

Storage
Best stored in a plastic bag between 45-50° F, the bag should have a few holes for adequate airflow and ventilation.

Using taro leaf
Taro leaves must be boiled for at least 45 minutes before consuming. Why? Because small, crystal-like pieces of calcium oxalate irritate the mouth and tongue when not fully cooked. Even then, some irritation may be noted.

Taro leaves may be cooked and used like spinach.

Some Hawaiian dish

Fafa
steamed chicken and taro leaf in coconut milk

Palusami
Breadfruit with young taro leaf and coconut cream
.........................................
Traditional Laulau

Preparation time: Under 30 minutes + 1-2 hours soaking time
Cooking time: 4-6 hours
Cost: Economical
Difficulty: Relatively easy
Tradition

Taro is the staple of the Hawaiian diet and gave its name, lu'au (taro tops), to the traditional Hawaiian feast. Lu`au Taro leaves, often baked with coconut cream and chicken or octopus; the word eventually came to mean a Hawaiian feast, which is also known as 'aha'aina or pa'ina.

Ingredients

24 luau (taro) leaves (or substitute fresh spinach)
-----------------------------------------------------------
450 g (1 lb.) salted butterfish or salmon (or substitute salted cod)
-----------------------------------------------------------
1 1/2 tbsp. Hawaiian rock salt (kosher)
-----------------------------------------------------------
900 g (2 lb.) pork shoulder, cut in 2-5 cm (1-2") cubes
-----------------------------------------------------------8 ti leaves (or substitute corn husks or parchment paper)
-----------------------------------------------------------
String for tying
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4 plantains, skin on
-----------------------------------------------------------
4 sweet corn or yams, skin on

Method

Wash the taro leaves thoroughly. Remove the stems and fibrous part of the vein. If the fish is very salty, cover it with water in a bowl, soak for 1 - 2 hours, and drain. Rub the salt into the pork and set aside.
Arrange 5-6 taro leaves in the palm of your hand and place a piece of pork and a piece of fish in the middle. Fold the leaves over the pork and fish to form a bundle.
Prepare the ti leaves by cutting the stiff center rib and stripping it off to make the leaf pliable.
Place the taro leaf bundle at one end of the leaf and roll it up. Place another ti leaf across the bundle in the other direction and roll. Tie the ti leaf bundles securely with household string and knot.
Place the raw laulau bundle in a steamer with water in the bottom. Steam the laulau for 4-6 hours, checking the water and adding more as necessary. The time will vary according to the density of the laulau. Add the bananas and sweet potatoes to the steamer during the last hour.

Hawai'i. Like all universitys the major thrust is towards

commercial growing, but you can interpret the information

to your needs. http://www.google.com/u/uhwww?q=taro+plants&sitesearch=hawaii.edu&domains=hawaii.edu&sa=Search

I have a question regarding taro root & the planting thereof.
While at the grocery store today I happened by the Asian produce section, and they had GIANT bins of taro root, so I figured 'why not'! I picked up a small root about 3" long & 2" wide, it has 3 small eyes and one large 'sprout' at the top. It feels nice and firm all over.

The best part *** it only cost me $0.08 *** !!!

Now the question, and likely a dumb one. When I plant this prize, do I completely bury it as if planting a potato, or do I leave the top bit exposed above the surface of the soil?

Thank you! Any help would be appreciated.

~GardenChicken in the (still) frozen north

With respect to your question, what you purchased is what I purchased last year, and they behaved almost as well as Elephant Ears, - not quite as large, but very close to it. Yes, I plant it very much like a potatoe, and it sent out copious roots and before I knew it I had all kinds of little plants. I have even been able to overwinter some of them in a sunny window. They make a nice statement without a big statement on my Mastecard bill. Well done. Stick it into a reasonably large pot now, and let it go. Mine are currently in 8 inch diameter pots now.

Hate to tell you this though, Great Slave Lake is in the Northwest Territories, it is Lesser Slave Lake that resides in Alberta (a small pool of water compared to it's big brother!). LOL
I have a very good friend that lives in (Lesser) Slave Lake. Indeed it is colder up that way.
I do envy you folks in southern Ontario, seems like the tropics compared to here!

I'll be very curious to see how the taro grows here with our seemingly constant wind and cool nights. I'm hoping to do a little bit of a bog container (my first) in the backyard this year.

Again, thanks for your reply!

~GC

any help appreciated
Gayle

This is my first time growing taro and this is what I did. I completely covered my taro in moist peat moss and placed it in a plastic baggie on the window sill. My curiosity had me digging around every couple days to see if anything was happening. Within a couple weeks I saw roots start to develop and at that point I potted it up proper, to a depth of about 3", in an 8" pot (as Jroot suggested) and it has taken off like lightning. I could see on my 'root' which way was up, but suspect once your roots start all will become clear.

Hope this helps, and good luck!

~GardenChicken

Gayle

P.S also bought a 4 ft chunk of sugar cane, going to try to give it a whirl....any suggestions??? I have cut it into thirds and stuck it in water and stones like bamboo

How are your taro/amaryllis'ish/mysteryplants doing? Any sprouts yet? How about an update on your sugar cane!

The taro I planted has a really nice fat shoot that is about 2" above the surface of the soil, and it looks like a bright green leaf forming.

Can anyone tell me if I should be fertilizing at this point, and if so, with what?

Thanks,
GC

I have taro potted up and growing leaves. I don't fertilize it at all during the winter. My purpose it to keep it alive,and not to grow large leaves. With inadequate light, it would create very large leaves, and possibly become spindley, only to be sunburned when I take it outdoors. I would rather it develop good roots than good leaves. When I take it outdoors, it will develop good leaves appropriate to the amount of light it gets.

I hope this helps.

sugarcan was cut into 12 in chunks and stuck in water.....placed on top of a flourecent light for the bottom heat......water has to be changed every day or the sugar in the water starts to forment and smell like wine.......hm I'm on a wine kick.........
two of the peices have lots of roots about 2 in long around each ring of the cane.......no buds yet.......and one of the peices has no roots but it has buds.....go figure....
It's going to be interesting.............
going to wait another week and then pot one up ;o)

Tryed something new found banana seeds put those on the heating duct too we'll see.

Gayle

Here's a link on posting pictures that I pilfered from another forum. I've not read through it but assume because of it's length that somewhere in there is a good explanation! LOL

~GC

Gayle

Here's how mine is looking now, it is 4" tall:

I have found however, that they are a magnet for aphids. So I have been spraying them, and this morning dabbing with alcohol directly on the little blighters.

I won't be putting them out to the garden until June, but near the mid-end of April be putting them into the garage in the evening, and out to the driveway during warm days. That should slow the aphid population down somewhat, and also slow upward growth in exchange for better root development in their 2 gallon pots.

Is it normal for them to start sending up leaves when they're as short as mine?

And you don't put yours in the garden till June in zone 5a? Oh boy, what does that mean for zone 3!

I find that they like to have warm soil. With cold soil, they just sit there and appear to be doing nothing. Actually they are sending out roots all over the place, so when planting make sure that they are in an area that you don't mind runners....some several feet long. When the soil warms up, up they come.

Last year, I had them in a rather protected place from the wind, albeit more shady.
This summer, I will try them in a sunny bog I started. The downside of this site is the wind that comes through. We'll just see who wins,- wind or Taro.

I will be THRILLED if mine even comes close to that size. Your coleus (?) are beautiful as well! Very nice contrast of foliage texture and colour.

Thanks for the tip about the runners. My plan is to grow it in a container bog, so that won't be a problem for me.

I gotta say, I've never had so much fun on 8 cents in my life! I've been hoving over that leaf watching it slooooowly unfurl today. Something I found interesting is it always seems to have one droplet of what appears to be water at the very tip of the leaf. Have you noticed this with yours?

This is so cool! :)

I am sure that you will enjoy them. Yes, I do notice that drop of moisture. Sometimes it makes me wonder if the aphids are getting to it. Is the moisture sticky? If so, APHIDS. If not, enjoy.

The plant on the right is not an EE or Taro. It is a ligularia.

The drop on the end of the leaf isn't sticky, it seems to just be water. Weird. It would just come back if I knocked it off.

I didn't know that Ligularia leaves would get so big. Nice plant!

estheramgr,
How to Grow Taro below: