Taro

Taro (possibly a Māori; word, it is kalo in Hawaiian) is a tropical plant (Colocasia esculenta in the Family Araceae) grown for its edible stem or corm and leaves. Flowers are also eaten. The word kalo refers to the corm. Taro is closely related to Elephant ear and Caladium, plants commonly grown as ornamentals.

Taro is a traditional staple in many tropical areas of the world, and is the base for poi in Hawai'i. The plant is actually inedible if ingested raw because of raphides in the plant cells. Severe gastrointestinal distress can occur unless the plant is properly processed first.

Taro is grown in pondfields called lo'i (in Hawaiian). The picture at right shows several small lo'i in Maunawili Valley on O'ahu. The ditch on the left in the picture is called an 'auwai and supplies diverted stream water to the lo'i or pondfields. Cool flowing water yields the best crop. Some of this taro in the foreground has been harvested and the caretakers are preparing to replant the huli stacked at their feet. These are the top portion of the corm with a short piece of bladeless leafstem.

The Hawai'i Agricultural Statistics Service puts the 10-year median production of taro in the Hawaiian Islands at about 6.1 million pounds (2,800 t). However, 2003 taro production in Hawai'i was only 5 million pounds (2,300 t) an all-time low. The previous low, reached in 1997, was 5.5 million pounds (2,500 t). Urbanization has driven down harvests from a high of 14.1 million pounds (6,400 t) in 1948. But more recently the decline has resulted from pests and diseases. A non-native apple snail (Pomacea canaliculata) is a major culprit in the current crop decline. Also, a plant rot disease, traced to a newly identified species of the fungal genus Phytophthora, now plagues crops throughout the state. Although pesticides could control both pests to some extent, pesticide use in the pondfields is barred because of the clear opportunity for chemicals to quickly migrate into streams and then the ocean (V. Viotti, Honolulu Advertiser, March 16, 2004).

Taro is also used by some Taiwanese as an affectionate nickname for the Chinese mainlanders.''