Growing Taro, also Dasheen, cocoyam

Colocasia esculenta : Araceae / the arum or lily family

Jan F M A M J J A S O N Dec

Not recommended for growing in USA - Zone 5a regions

  • Plant small pieces of tuber or suckers, 5-8cm deep. Best planted at soil temperatures between 68°F and 95°F. (Show °C/cm)
  • Space plants: 31 inches apart
  • Harvest in approximately 28 weeks. When the leaves begin to die down. .
  • Compatible with (can grow beside): Best in separate bed
  • Taro plant (commons.wikimedia.org - Kahuroa - Public Domain)
  • Taro Leaf (Japanese Taro)
  • Taro root

NB: Make sure that you plant EDIBLE Taro, some varieties that are grown as ornamental plants are not edible and can have unpleasant results if eaten. There is some useful information here http://plants.usda.gov/plantguide/pdf/cs_coes.pdf Taro grows to about 1 m (3 ft) and has long, green, heart-shaped leaves on long stalks. Taro grows well in warm/hot, humid areas - it needs a long growing time, frost free and lots of water. Keep well watered. Dryness will stop growth. Grow in full sun.

Taro is damaged by cold or frosty weather. Lift the tubers and store in a cool dry place.

Culinary hints - cooking and eating Taro

Taro can be cooked like potatoes, boiled, roasted, fried or steamed. It is not eaten raw.

Your comments and tips

Post a comment or question Display Newest first | Oldest first, Show comments for USA | for all countries
25 Sep 24, Grace (USA - Zone 6b climate)
Is there a possibility to create an enclosed greenhouse environment to grow taro in 6b zone? If so would I need to adjust growing time?
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28 Jul 23, dz (USA - Zone 10a climate)
We live in San Diego "Inland" microclimate Zone 10A and have a serious gopher problem throughout the entire area, so I do 99% of my gardening in containers, including grapes, a guava tree, a fig, Moringas, camote, some herbs like basil, oregano, parsley, sage, rosemary, thyme, and lots of different vegetables. My wife brought home a small 2" taro root from her sister that had started growing a shoot, maybe 1/2". I let it sit on the counter for a couple weeks and the sprout started to dry up, and I have never grown taro so looked it up and discovered it's supposed to be a "water plant", which is good for me because I tend to overwater. I put the root in a small clean snack cup (originally had applesauce in it) and added water about half-way up the root and put it in a sunny east window. In a week it had started growing roots, and within two weeks the sprout got green and started growing again, and a lot more smaller roots started growing at the base of the sprout, so I planted it in a 5-gallon bucket this morning, will water it heavily, and see what happens.
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27 Aug 23, dz (USA - Zone 10a climate)
I started with the taro out in full sun, but the sun here gets intense and seemed to be stressing the taro, so I moved it into dappled sun under the Guava and it is doing much better. I water it heavily along with the Guava and bananas, and the taro is now about 12 inches high with several very green leaves and more sprouting. Two small shoots have come up next to the main plant, about an inch high, and I don't know if I should leave them alone or separate them and plant them in their own containers. Location seems to be the key, along with warm temperatures in the 80's - 90's, and keep it moist.
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18 Jun 23, The Jake (USA - Zone 9b climate)
Is it possible to get decent to good results from taro in the low desert of AZ? Is it even worth your time even if you just want the growth cover for the yar?
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