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Colocasia esculenta:
Wild taro
Colocasia esculenta (L.) Schott: Wild taro, elephant-ear. Araceae (arum family).
Exotic perennial. The plant's stout leaf-stems emerge to a height of 1.5 - 4 ft (0.45 - 1.2 m) from a large round, roughly-ridged, brown corm (the taro root); they produce dense clumps in shallow water or moist or swampy soil. The large leaves, 10 - 24 in (25 - 60 cm) long, are arrowhead-shaped, with long rounded basal lobes; leaf margins are wavy. Midveins from the main blade and the lobes form a 'Y' and the leaf stalk attaches to the underside of the blade where these veins meet. Small flowers are borne on a short spike within a slender, yellow, leaf-like structure. Vegetative reproduction is common, from corms produced on underground stems. The raw leaves and fleshy root contain irritating calcium oxalate crystals that can cause poisoning. While these plant parts are used for food in certain areas of the world, they require thorough cooking.
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