Common Name: Swamp Taro

General Information

Cyrtosperma merkusii is a giant herbaceous perennial plant with typically 6 - 8 huge leaves arising from a short subterranean stem. The leaf blades are arrow shaped, 1 - 2 metres in length, and are borne on stout petioles, 1 - 2 metres long[]. A mature plant may reach 3 - 4 metres tall[].
Swamp taro is believed to be the largest plant in the world which produces edible corms[]. The plant is a staple food in some areas of Asia and the Pacific, where it is commonly cultivated for its corms, which provide a rich source of carbohydrate[]

Known Hazards

The plant contains calcium oxalate crystals. These cause an extremely unpleasant sensation similar to needles being stuck into the mouth and tongue if they are eaten, but they are easily neutralized by thoroughly drying or cooking the plant or by steeping it in water[].

Botanical References

Range

E. Asia - Malaysia, S.W. Pacific.

Habitat

Not known

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Habit	Perennial
Height	4.00 m
Growth Rate	Fast
Pollinators	Insects
Cultivation Status	Cultivated, Wild

Cultivation Details

A plant of tropical lowlands. Areas of high rainfall and humidity are required for the best yields[].
Requires a moist, shady position sheltered from the wind, succeeding in a wide range of soils[, ]. Ideal growing conditions are natural swamp land rich in humus, covered with 20 - 70cm of slow running (or irrigation) water[]. The plant is often grown in coastal swamps just inland of mangrove swamps[]. Tolerates brackish conditions[].
Yields of 10 tonnes per hectare have been recorded[].
It is generally considered that the plant requires 2 - 3 years in order to produce a reasonably-sized tuber[]. Younger than this, the tubers of some cultivars are reported to have an unpleasant taste, although on the Pingelap Attoll, Caroline Islands, some early-maturing types are harvested after about one year[]. Some authorities, however, consider that for optimum results as regards flavour and yield, the crop should be harvested when the plants are 5 - 6 years old[].
There are some named varieties[].

Edible Uses

Corm - cooked[]. Roasted, steamed or boiled[]. The corms are also mashed into a dough, which is kneaded and left to ferment before being baked in an oven[]. Mature corms are produced in three years, they can reach 1 metre long and 60cm in diameter and weigh up to 80kg[]. The stem thickens rapidly at the base becoming a large corm, varying in shape from cylindrical to conical or almost spherical. The size varies with cultivar and age; 15 - 25 kg is common, but it can weigh up to 90 kg or more in a 10 year old plant[]. Although corms of 10 years old or more may be very large and weigh 100 kg or more, requiring two or three men to carry them, they are fibrous and not suitable for eating, though in certain circumstances such corms have a considerable prestige value[]. Some caution is advised, see notes above on toxicity.

Leaves and inflorescence - cooked and used as a vegetable[]. Some caution is advised, see notes above on toxicity.

Medicinal

A decoction of the flower cluster is used as an emmenagogue and embolic[].

Other Uses

None known

Propagation

Seed -
Division of suckers. Cormels, which send up leaves and develop into suckers, are produced as side shoots on the parent corm after about three years[].

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