Leucocasia gigantea, also called the giant elephant ear or Indian taro, is a species of flowering plant. It is a 1.5–3 m (4 ft 11 in – 9 ft 10 in) tall aroid plant with a large, fibrous corm, producing at its apex a whorl of thick, green leaves.[2] It is the sole species in genus Leucocasia.[1]
| Leucocasia gigantea | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Monocots |
| Order: | Alismatales |
| Family: | Araceae |
| Subfamily: | Aroideae |
| Tribe: | Colocasieae |
| Genus: | Leucocasia Schott (1857) |
| Species: | L. gigantea |
| Binomial name | |
| Leucocasia gigantea (Blume) Schott (1857) | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
| |
Cultivation
Leucocasia gigantea is a "sister species" to another widely-cultivated 'taro', Colocasia esculenta, as well as to the alocasias, such as the large Alocasia macrorrhizos; it is speculated that L. gigantea was created as a result of natural hybridization between A. macrorrhizos and C. esculenta.[3] It is called 'dọc mùng' in northern Vietnam and 'môn bạc hà' or 'bạc hà' in some provinces in southern Vietnam.[4][5][6]
In Japanese, it is commonly called ハス芋 (hasu-imo),[7] or "lotus yam". It is known as ryukyu in Kōchi Prefecture, as it is found in the Ryukyu Kingdom.[citation needed]
Uses
In addition to its value as a starchy root vegetable—known by many names, such as taro, or arbi (in Hindi)—the plant’s leaf stalk (petiole) is also used as a vegetable in some areas of Southeastern Asia and Japan.[citation needed] It is sometimes used as an ingredient in miso soup, chanpurū and sushi.[citation needed]
References
