Q: How to overwinter Taro?

[Lt. Kizhe Catson]

It'll be frost-time fairly soon here (Ottawa), so I'm planning what to
do. In past years I've kept my Black Magic Taro awake, in a small
aquarium under grow-bulbs (interesting factoid: the deep dusky colour
only appears under sunlight; under artificial light the leaves are
dark green with only the veins showing maroon).

However, I divided it this year, so I now have three healthy pots and
can afford to experiment (ie. risk losing one). So: can taro be
overwintered in a dormant state, and if so how? Should it be kept wet
or dry, and at what temperature?

And of course the followup Q is: how do I wake it up in Spring? I
have a sunroom which would be good for "hardening off" (if that's
something you can even do to taro).

-- Kizhe

[Roy]

On 21 Sep 2004 10:12:28 -0700, (Lt. Kizhe Catson)
wrote:

>===<>It'll be frost-time fairly soon here (Ottawa), so I'm planning what to
>===<>do. In past years I've kept my Black Magic Taro awake, in a small
>===<>aquarium under grow-bulbs (interesting factoid: the deep dusky colour
>===<>only appears under sunlight; under artificial light the leaves are
>===<>dark green with only the veins showing maroon).
>===<>
>===<>However, I divided it this year, so I now have three healthy pots and
>===<>can afford to experiment (ie. risk losing one). So: can taro be
>===<>overwintered in a dormant state, and if so how? Should it be kept wet
>===<>or dry, and at what temperature?
>===<>
>===<>And of course the followup Q is: how do I wake it up in Spring? I
>===<>have a sunroom which would be good for "hardening off" (if that's
>===<>something you can even do to taro).
>===<>
>===<>-- Kizhe


Another thing about the black taro is when it gets really ot outside
it also turns green and looks like the regular green taro. Our black
taro turns green n the middle of the summer up until it starts to cool
down and then it starts coming out black again. The leaves in the
shady areas stay black most of the time. here we just let it clump up
and get mushy and pull the stalks off as it will take up again in
spring where it left off the previous year. They sell dry taro
tubers, so I would assume if you dug it up and washed it, and placed
it in a plastic bag or a container filled with dry peat and place it
in a dark cool spot it will be right for next years go.
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Opinions expressed are those of my wife,
I had no input whatsoever.
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[~ Windsong ~]

"Roy" > wrote in message
...
.. here we just let it clump up
> and get mushy and pull the stalks off as it will take up again in
> spring where it left off the previous year.

** How cold do your winters get?

They sell dry taro
> tubers,

** The black or purple tubers?

so I would assume if you dug it up and washed it, and placed
> it in a plastic bag or a container filled with dry peat and place it
> in a dark cool spot it will be right for next years go.

** I winter over my Caladium's, a related plant dry in their pots. But the
black taro has a mass of roots the Caladium's don't have. Drying these
roots may kill them - no?
--
Carol.... the frugal ponder...
"They laugh because I'm different, I laugh because they're all the same."
http://www.heartoftn.net/users/windsong/index.html
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

[Roy]

On Tue, 21 Sep 2004 21:32:01 -0500, "~ Windsong ~" >
wrote:

>===<>
>===<>"Roy" > wrote in message
...
>===<>. here we just let it clump up
>===<>> and get mushy and pull the stalks off as it will take up again in
>===<>> spring where it left off the previous year.
>===<>
>===<>** How cold do your winters get?
>===<>
>===<>They sell dry taro
>===<>> tubers,
>===<>
>===<>** The black or purple tubers?
>===<>
>===<>so I would assume if you dug it up and washed it, and placed
>===<>> it in a plastic bag or a container filled with dry peat and place it
>===<>> in a dark cool spot it will be right for next years go.
>===<>
>===<>** I winter over my Caladium's, a related plant dry in their pots. But the
>===<>black taro has a mass of roots the Caladium's don't have. Drying these
>===<>roots may kill them - no?


Not very cold really........no special precautions are used to thwart
cold weather done in this area.
Visit my website: http://www.frugalmachinist.com
Opinions expressed are those of my wife,
I had no input whatsoever.
Remove "nospam" from email addy.

[~ jan JJsPond.us]

I'd be very interested in your results, especially dry storage. I took
bring in my taros, in buckets, next to window and under lights. Would be so
much easier to store dry, but I'm not brave enough to try. ~ jan

>On 21 Sep 2004 10:12:28 -0700, (Lt. Kizhe Catson) wrote:

>It'll be frost-time fairly soon here (Ottawa), so I'm planning what to
>do. In past years I've kept my Black Magic Taro awake, in a small
>aquarium under grow-bulbs (interesting factoid: the deep dusky colour
>only appears under sunlight; under artificial light the leaves are
>dark green with only the veins showing maroon).
>
>However, I divided it this year, so I now have three healthy pots and
>can afford to experiment (ie. risk losing one). So: can taro be
>overwintered in a dormant state, and if so how? Should it be kept wet
>or dry, and at what temperature?
>
>And of course the followup Q is: how do I wake it up in Spring? I
>have a sunroom which would be good for "hardening off" (if that's
>something you can even do to taro).
>
>-- Kizhe

~Power to the Porg, Flow On!~

[jammer]

I have such a huge taro that i have decided not to bring it in this
year. I am undecided what to do with it though. Cut the stalks and
sink it? I am considering that.




On Wed, 22 Sep 2004 14:53:45 -0700, ~ jan JJsPond.us
> wrote:

>I'd be very interested in your results, especially dry storage. I
took
>bring in my taros, in buckets, next to window and under lights. Would
be so
>much easier to store dry, but I'm not brave enough to try. ~ jan
>
>>On 21 Sep 2004 10:12:28 -0700, (Lt. Kizhe Catson)
wrote:
>
>>It'll be frost-time fairly soon here (Ottawa), so I'm planning what
to
>>do. In past years I've kept my Black Magic Taro awake, in a small
>>aquarium under grow-bulbs (interesting factoid: the deep dusky
colour
>>only appears under sunlight; under artificial light the leaves are
>>dark green with only the veins showing maroon).
>>
>>However, I divided it this year, so I now have three healthy pots
and
>>can afford to experiment (ie. risk losing one). So: can taro be
>>overwintered in a dormant state, and if so how? Should it be kept
wet
>>or dry, and at what temperature?
>>
>>And of course the followup Q is: how do I wake it up in Spring? I
>>have a sunroom which would be good for "hardening off" (if that's
>>something you can even do to taro).
>>
>>-- Kizhe
>
> ~Power to the Porg, Flow On!~

[Lt. Kizhe Catson]

jammer > wrote in message >...
> I have such a huge taro that i have decided not to bring it in this
> year. I am undecided what to do with it though. Cut the stalks and
> sink it? I am considering that.

Best of luck. I don't know where you are, but in Ottawa it isn't an
option: the pond freezes over solid from December thru early March and
the water underneath will be at the canonical 3degC. I'm pretty sure
that will kill anything tropical.

-- Kizhe

> On Wed, 22 Sep 2004 14:53:45 -0700, ~ jan JJsPond.us
> > wrote:
>
> >I'd be very interested in your results, especially dry storage. I
> took
> >bring in my taros, in buckets, next to window and under lights. Would
> be so
> >much easier to store dry, but I'm not brave enough to try. ~ jan
> >
> >>On 21 Sep 2004 10:12:28 -0700, (Lt. Kizhe Catson)
> wrote:
>
> >>It'll be frost-time fairly soon here (Ottawa), so I'm planning what
> to
> >>do. In past years I've kept my Black Magic Taro awake, in a small
> >>aquarium under grow-bulbs (interesting factoid: the deep dusky
> colour
> >>only appears under sunlight; under artificial light the leaves are
> >>dark green with only the veins showing maroon).
> >>
> >>However, I divided it this year, so I now have three healthy pots
> and
> >>can afford to experiment (ie. risk losing one). So: can taro be
> >>overwintered in a dormant state, and if so how? Should it be kept
> wet
> >>or dry, and at what temperature?
> >>
> >>And of course the followup Q is: how do I wake it up in Spring? I
> >>have a sunroom which would be good for "hardening off" (if that's
> >>something you can even do to taro).
> >>
> >>-- Kizhe
> >
> > ~Power to the Porg, Flow On!~

[Roy]

A follow up on wintering over Taro as taken out of two aquatic
gardening books I have.

Both books give basically the same info and list only two ways.
1.....Bring plants in pots indoors , place in saucer in warn sunny
room.
2.....Let plants dry out, dig up the corm, and store corm in a tighly
sealed plastic bag filled with coarse vermiculite, in yet another
sealed container in a cool but frostfree area.


They also recomend transplanting yearly to keep plants healthy.

Visit my website: http://www.frugalmachinist.com
Opinions expressed are those of my wife,
I had no input whatsoever.
Remove "nospam" from email addy.

[Lt. Kizhe Catson]

(Roy) wrote in message >...
> A follow up on wintering over Taro as taken out of two aquatic
> gardening books I have.
>
> Both books give basically the same info and list only two ways.
> 1.....Bring plants in pots indoors , place in saucer in warn sunny
> room.
> 2.....Let plants dry out, dig up the corm, and store corm in a tighly
> sealed plastic bag filled with coarse vermiculite, in yet another
> sealed container in a cool but frostfree area.

Thanks, I think I'll try that with one of the plants. I have a cold
cellar that generally sits somewhat below typical room temp during the
winter.

> They also recomend transplanting yearly to keep plants healthy.

That might explain why they did so well this year. Confession: I have
this bad habit of getting impatient and putting the tropicals out
before the water is really warm enough. The effect seems to be that
it kills off the top, and makes the root split into multiple plants.
So I transplanted the divisions into three pots last spring, put them
in three different locations -- and they all took off! HUGE leaves!

-- Kizhe