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‘Elepaio

Taxonomy  Colocasia esculenta var. esculenta

Other names (synonyms)

Habit   Short to medium in height, moderately spreading, stocky, producing 5-10 ‘ohā.

Corm   Flesh white with yellowish fibers; cortex cream-colored.

Petiole   Fairly rigid, green- and white-striped, often slightly tinged on the lower half with reddish-brown (pink variety?), yellowish-green at apex, pink at edge, white above the base with a pale pink ring at the base (kōhina).

Leaf blade   Ovate, fairly firm in texture, slightly concave, green- and white-mottled; margins undulate; piko small, yellowish; lobes acute with very narrow sinus.

Origin   Hawaiian variety.

Cultivation  Dryland cultivation; maturing in 7-12 months; of little importance because of low yield.

Uses   Produces poi of a light gray color.

Comments   Displays true variegation, with the amount of white area varying with environmental conditions. Believed to grow wild near the forest near where the ‘Elepaio made its home; others maintain that the variety was planted at dawn when the ‘Elepaio was singing; the splotches on the leaves were also thought to suggest the markings of the ‘Elepaio bird


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