Colocasia Esculenta

[Rob L]

I have noticed some comments about Colocasia Esculenta. I don't know if the forum members are aware but this plant is freely available at Wilkinson's (the Worksop based Wilkinson's chain in the UK) in the spring. I bought several plants (dry tubers in a plastic wrapping) and they are so cheap that you can experiment without breaking the bank.(£2.99 for a decent sized tuber) These Colocasia's are much hardier than thought. I now have a big clump growing up against the south wall of my house up here in North Yorkshire. I didn't protect the plant at all last winter, the top was liquified by the frost but the roots freely survive. It emerges in May up here and grows quick. It was not knocked down by frost until the first week of December last year (2009) I have another clump out in the open for this winter. I don't know how it will survive the current winter as this is the most severe cold that I can ever remember or have recorded, -13.9c at Topcliffe two weeks ago. This is a notorious frost pocket but not that far from where I live.

In the spring. Wilkinson's also sell Hedychium Gardnerianum and supposedly Hedychium Aurantiacum (although the photograph on the package is obviously a photo of Gardnerianum coloured orange)

[bobbyd44]

a few members bought these a couple of years ago, and i think they have done well too. i did search a few wilkinsons this summer but they only had the hedechiums..gutted

[tenchy]

wilkos is the dogs danglies for loads of stuff, we had a shallot load of plants and garden stuff from them in the summer, very very good prices too

got a palm from them that was a bit tatty for 50p!! looks great now and its not frozen to death cos its in the lounge!!

[Eddy]

Hi Rob, I have just bought a pound of 'eddoes' for £1.50 at a local Asian grocers shop. I ended up with about eight Colocasia Esculenta tubers most have already started shooting. (A bit early, I know.) But they are easy to find, if I need more.
Buy the way, a big welcome to the forum. The more the merrier.

[Dave Brown]

Rob, was it sold as Colocasia esculenta, as we all bought a Colocasia mislabelled as Alocasia. We nicknamed it Mammoth as it grew almost 1m leaves in 2007. This proved hardy for me last winter unprotected .... sounds very similar.

Here is some light reading on it

http://www.hardytropicals.co.uk/forum/v ... lit=wilkos
http://www.hardytropicals.co.uk/forum/v ... ompetition
http://www.hardytropicals.co.uk/forum/v ... it=mammoth
http://www.hardytropicals.co.uk/forum/v ... it=mammoth

[Yorkshire Kris]

I've just bought a dozen coco-yams /eddoes from the market today and only cost £2.30. I did the same in 2009 and they all grew into good plants.

[derrick]

There are plenty in my local market to .I have some stored in my shed .They had some in the market yesterday named dasheen very big like a plate .Much bigger than eddoes shame they had gone mushy.

[Sat]

Hi after looking on the forum people suggested trying the asian shops for Colocasia eddos etc.

I went to one and pick up see below for £1.40.

Now as new to this, how to I pot, is it straight forward potting in pot and where ? Does it need to be warm inside or is it ok outside.

As we don't know what these eddos/ pups are is it just a case of seeing what they turn into?

thanks

[grub]

Sat, I always put mine in the A.V. cupboard and wait for them to sprout before I pot them up

[Dave Brown]

Briefly, as will do a full post on them later, I fizzed mine in 1% H2O2 in warm water for a couple hours two weeks ago, most I left damp and sealed in a plastic food bag up on top of the kitchen wall cupboards. Normally this is a recipe for rot and molds..... damp and sealed but the H2O2 stopped that. Now have new shoots and a couple of roots. At the same time I put one on the wet grit in the propagator at 30C, and that has done nothing so maybe too much heat is not what it wants.

[Sat]

thanks, would like the simpliest way to get them sarted.

grub - what did u put the eddoes in , a bag, pot with compost? How much water ?

[grub]

Absolutely nothing Sat, just put them in and waited for them to sprout; Then potted them into a 50/50 multi-purpose and perlite mix which I keep moist until the first proper leaves appear and straight out into the ground with them

[dave2166]

i went shopping today, and purely by chance happened to pass a large garden centre nr preston

as a few items jumped into my basket, i saw that they had Colocasia for sale, loose at 6.99 each. i was taken aback at the size, considering they also had them packaged up in singles at 4.99 each and they were less than half the size, taylors bulbs if anyone wants to keep a look out

i thought i would post a pic with reference object to give an idea of price

for the experts out there, pointers please on planting depth, and treatment to get it going in the greenhouse

[metalhammer]

Nowt on there website.




metalhammer.

[redsquirrel]

Dave B gave me a few tubers to try,i put them in slightly most coir out in the hallway,relatively cool compared to most rooms in the house.
this is the only one sprouting so far but even if its the only one i get,will be well chuffed