>Re: [Aroid-l] Alocasia robusta & Colocasia
gigantea----- Original
>Message -----
>From: Peter
Matthews
>To: Discussion of aroids Sent: Monday, May 23, 2005 10:54 PM
Subject: Re: [Aroid-l] Alocasia robusta Colocasia gigantea
Dear Peter,
Thanks for the information! I had NO idea that the true Colocasia gigantea
was edible, or cultivated as such! Thanks! Has anyone CONFIRMED that
what is being called C. gigantea/hasu-imo is in fact this species, by
examination of the blooms, etc., or is this plant just a larger cultivar of
Colocasia esculenta??
David---I`d bet that the non- acrid Colocasia species is a VERY special
cultivar! No one should EVER mess w/ ANY Aroid species if they do not
know exactly what they are doing, they will TEAR you up!
Good Growing,
Julius
Thanks for asking... Colocasia esculenta (sat-imo in japanese) is the main
species grown, usually for the corms, but some cultivars are also used as
stem vegetables. Colocasia gigantea (hasu-imo in Japanese) is only grown
as a stem vegetable, with an almost completely non-acrid petiole (can be
peeled and then sliced thinly and eaten as a vinegared pickle). A single
clump of C. gigantea here and there is common in home gardens, but there
are also many commercial producers with entire fields of the plant, in
warmer southern areas. Both species are summer crops here. ;Peter
********************************** I've been growing C. gigantea here in
the mountains of northeast Tennessee
>(Zone 6a, Lat. 36.51 N) for
about 17 years. They're growing in the ground
>with a fairly heavy
winter leaf mulch and have proven quite hardy, more so
>than C.
esculenta. With lots of sun, water and fertilizer, they can
make
>quite a specimen by the time frosty weather gets here,
although not anywhere
>near their potential. I get fans of
infloresences in good years that are
>interesting but never any
seeds. When it rains heavily, the upward facing
>leaves tip the
water out make for an interesting visual. I recall seeing a
>photo
of them turned over and used effectively as rain hats in
Vietnam.
>They make almost no tuber, so to overwinter them out of
the ground, they
>must be potted up and kept moist to keep them
alive.
>
>I think edibility must be somewhat variable with
these plants. The
>Vietnamese lady that furnished mine said that
they cook and eat the leaf
>petioles and tender new leaves like
spinach, never raw. I've yet to try it
>that way but a Chinese
friend decided to try a bite of an uncooked stem one
>time and one
time only. The calcium oxalate crystals set her mouth and
>tongue
on fire! She was even afraid to try it cooked after that,
although
>cooking is supposed to neutralize that
problem.
>
>David
Sizemore
>
>
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