Taro (pronounced /ˈtɑroʊ/) is a common name for the corms and tubers of several genera of the famil Araceae The name includes species of Colocasia spp (dasheen, taro, cocoyam, eddoe)[1]Alocasia spp (giant taro), Amorphophallus campanulatus (Roxb) (elephant yam) and Crytosperma chamissons (Shott) and the tropical American Xanthosoma sagittifolim (Shott). Of all the edible aroids, Taro as Colocasia esculenta is the most widely cultivated and native to southeast Asia [2]. It is a perennial, tropical plant primarily grown as a root vegetable for its edible starchy corm, and as a leaf vegetable and is considered a staple in African, Oceanic and Asian cultures. It is believed to have been one of the earliest cultivated plants.[3] Colocasia is thought to have originated in the Indo-Malayan region, perhaps in eastern India and Bangladesh, and spread eastward into Southeast Asia, eastern Asia, and the Pacific islands; westward to Egypt and the eastern Mediterranean; and then southward and westward from there into East Africa and West Africa, from whence it spread to the Caribbean and America. It is known by many local names and often referred to as Elephant ears when grown as an ornamental plant.
