Planting Black Taro

[small fish]

I have grown this plant in my small pond before.  I had the chance at the Farmers Market today to buy several at a dirt cheap price.  What has been your experience in growing these plants :  in the pond in a container and bring it in for the winter or outside of the pond in the ground year round????

Myra

[Joyce]

I don't know where you live, but I live in a zone 7, usually on the warmer side of zone 7.
Last year I left mine in the ground in my perennial garden, threw a few black lawn bags of leaves over the row of them, and they ALL survived. Including a plain green variety and a small green and silver patterned running variety.

Here is  apic from this August, and they have been in the ground for over a year.

That's my little girl Jamie. (she is 10 and about 4 and half feet tall)

[Teresa]

I find the black to be somewhat less hardy than the green or even the imperial.  I've never had one survive the winter in the pond and only had a couple survive in the ground (tho I never gave them quite as much extra mulch as Joyce).  I do have luck with them if I let them go dormant and then store the pots in the garage (doesn't freeze - not heated, but attached to the house so doesn't get too cold). 

Neglected to mention - I'm in zone 7b

[Vickie]

I am in zone 5 and I bring mine inside and put in the basement where I have lights. It does not get much colder than 50*. I do keep it in a pot in water in a bucket. It works for me. But the leaves turn green till it goesback outside in late spring.

[PondmaninAL]

Here, in Florida, I leave my Black Magic taro in the pond all Winter in the pot of soil. Ponds don't freeze here.

Happy ponding,
Scott

[small fish]

Thanks, ya'll. Should have said I live in zone 8a.  And the taro I had I planted in a pot that I brought in for the winter.  As I have several of these I think I will plant some in the ground and see how they do.  Thanks again for your input.

Myra

[MikeW]

For years I left mine in the pond (Zone 10) and it took three years to thrive - but when it did, I had a wall of black leaves. It got too prolific, so I took it out of the pond and popped it into the garden.

Going with Joyce's post of some years ago, planting her taro beneath her dripping North Carolina air conditiong unit, I planted mine where the 'every three days' irrigation system would water it. It is HUGE in my desert L.A. back yard. Give them water, and they will thrive.

Throw it out, into a well watered area, and see what happens.

Cheers,

Mike

[small fish]

Thanks for the tip, Mike.... I will try that 

Myra

[karen J]

I always get so jealous of Ya'll in warmer climates.  :'( I bring mine inside, and keep them in the Bay window in my kitchen. They get quite leggy because of the lack of light (Chicago winters are miserable), and I spray the aphids off them around Jan-Feb.
This is my first year with Imperial, so I'm excited about that.

I had some plain Green Taros that I bought at the veggie stand and grew from tubers- they actually did the best this year after being stored bare-root in the basement. None of them get big like the ones in the South.

Did anybody see the Taro segment on the "Dirty Jobs" show? He (forgot name  ) was on a Taro farm in Hawaii and had to propagate Taro plants. According to him, Taro is the 13th most farmed food crop. It was interesting how the plant was ripped out of the mud, all the leaves cut off (for selling as a tortilla-like food wrap), the stalk was cut off at the meristem and replanted for a new cycle of growth, and the corms collected to be sold as a root crop (to make Poi).

Not a dirty job that I would mind! In fact, I didn't think it was that dirty at all. Maybe that guy should come over here and repot all my mucky lilies. 

[Teresa]

It should do fine outside in 8a since it will almost/occasionally survive outdoors for me here.