How to cultivate taro for high yield? Detailed explanation of key planting techniques

Everyone should be very familiar with taro, and it should be eaten often in daily life, but people who cook often will find that every time they wash taro, their hands become very itchy. It is said that this is a phenomenon of allergy to taro. Although many people are unwilling to wash taro, they still cannot resist the desire to eat taro.

What is taro

Taro, also known as yu or yunai, is the underground corm of plants in the Araceae family. Its shape and flesh vary by variety, and the type usually eaten is small taro. It is a perennial tuber plant, often cultivated as an annual crop. The leaves are shield-shaped, and the petioles are long and thick, green or purplish red; the base of the plant forms a shortened stem, which gradually accumulates nutrients and enlarges into a fleshy corm, called “taro” or “mother taro”, and may be spherical, ovate, elliptical, or block-shaped. Each node of the mother taro has a bud, but the axillary buds at the middle and lower nodes are the most active, producing the first tiller and forming a small corm called “daughter taro”; from the daughter taro, “granddaughter taro” then develops, and under suitable conditions, great-granddaughter taro or great-great-granddaughter taro, etc., can form.

Morphological characteristics of taro

Taro is a perennial tuber plant, often cultivated as an annual crop. The leaves are shield-shaped, and the petioles are long and thick, green or purplish red; the base of the plant forms a shortened stem, which gradually accumulates nutrients and enlarges into a fleshy corm, called “taro” or “mother taro”, and may be spherical, ovate, elliptical, or block-shaped. Each node of the mother taro has a bud, but the axillary buds at the middle and lower nodes are the most active, producing the first tiller and forming a small corm called “daughter taro”; from the daughter taro, “granddaughter taro” then develops, and under suitable conditions, great-granddaughter taro or great-great-granddaughter taro, etc., can form. It likes high temperature and humidity, is not drought-tolerant, is relatively shade-tolerant, and has the characteristics of aquatic plants, so it can be cultivated in paddy fields or dry land. The root system has weak absorbing power, and sufficient water is required throughout the growing period; it has wide adaptability to soil, and clay soil that is fertile, deep, and strong in water retention is suitable; seed taro begins to sprout at 13-15°C, the suitable growing temperature is above 20°C, the corm forms under short-day conditions, and the optimum temperature for development is 27-30°C. If it encounters low temperature and drought, growth is poor, seriously affecting yield.

How to plant taro to achieve high yield

1. Choose the plot

For taro land, choose black soil and alluvial soil with deep soil layers, fertile soil, high organic matter content, convenient drainage and irrigation, good water and fertilizer retention, and slightly higher moisture content.

2. Land preparation and fertilization

Remove root stubble, plow 30 cm deep, then form ridges with a ridge spacing of 70 cm. Apply 75 cubic meters of farm manure per hectare, 200 kg of nitrogen fertilizer, 00 kg of phosphorus fertilizer, and 150 kg of potassium fertilizer as base fertilizer, applied into the ridges.

3. Bud cultivation and planting

In order to extend the growth period of taro, 20 days before sowing, treat the taro with a heated kang or plastic arched shed to promote sprouting. When the taro buds grow to 4-5 cm, they can be removed from the kang (bed), cut and planted, and then sown. The sowing depth is 4-5 cm, the plant spacing is 35 cm, and when covering with soil, it is appropriate for the seed buds to be slightly exposed.

4. Field management

① Topdressing. Taro is a fertilizer-loving crop with a long growing period, so while applying nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium in combination, split topdressing should be advocated. The number of topdressings should be determined according to the growth of the taro, generally 2-3 times in its life.

② Watering. Taro is a water-loving crop. From emergence to harvest, the soil must be kept moist, and the soil moisture content should be slightly higher than that of general dry fields. In case of drought, irrigate in time, and in case of water accumulation, drain in time.

③ Intertillage and earthing up. During the seedling stage, weed in time, loosen the soil, increase soil temperature, and promote growth. When the seedling stage ends, it enters the vigorous growth period. Earth up about every 10 days. The main purpose is to inhibit the germination of daughter and granddaughter buds and promote the growth of the underground taro. This is a key measure in taro cultivation. Only by suppressing the daughter and granddaughter buds can the goal of improving yield and quality be achieved.

④ Disease control. Agricultural control and prevention should be given priority. Crop rotation can be used, inferior taro seeds should be eliminated, and disease-free taro seeds should be selected. This reduces the occurrence of diseases. For chemical control, various fungicides can be selected and sprayed on the leaves at different growth stages to prevent soft rot, blight, etc.

5. Harvest

In order to maximize the needs of the growth period, under the premise of ensuring no freezing damage, harvest as late as possible, which can improve yield and quality.

Taro planting conditions  

1. Temperature: Taro needs high-temperature and humid environmental conditions. A large temperature difference between day and night is conducive to corm formation. During the corm formation period, 28-30°C during the day and 18-20°C at night are most suitable.  

2. Water: Whether it is water taro or upland taro, taro likes humid natural environmental conditions. Upland taro requires moist soil during the growing period, while water taro requires a certain water layer during the growing period.  

3. Light: Taro is relatively tolerant of weak light and is not very strict about light intensity. It grows well under scattered light, and corm formation and expansion require short-day conditions.  

4. Soil: Water taro needs to be cultivated in paddy fields, low-lying land, or ditches. Although upland taro can grow on dry land, it still retains the ecological type of a marsh plant, so it is suitable to choose moist areas for planting.

In fact, planting taro is relatively simple. Taro likes to live in a high-temperature and humid environment. Its requirements for sunlight are not very high, so growers only need to ensure sufficient water. However, to obtain high-yield taro, water alone is certainly not enough.