Josie's Evening Snack

[Len B]

This is Josie eating the leaf from a plant that I bought as a food root from the grocery store. It is sold with the ginger, yucca, horseradish roots etc. I don't remember what it is called. But I think it may have the letters-- NAME --in it with some squiggly thing above one of the letters. It survived last winter in the ground in the middle of one of my banana tree patches which is mulched heavy.The leaves get over 36 in long,and the stems are thick and at least 5 ft long. The one she is eating measured 36 in, And I measured Josie, she--he is now 21 in. I put this in the Mt Tort section because I believe they are the only ones that eat this type of plant.I also grow all the other roots listed for tortoise food. Len

 

[Yvonne G]

I never thought of that. I'll have to look next time I'm in the store and see if my store sells it too. Good idea. If you think about it, please try to get the name next time you're in the store.

 

[Len B]

I never thought of that. I'll have to look next time I'm in the store and see if my store sells it too. Good idea. If you think about it, please try to get the name next time you're in the store.

I will, If I see roots at the grocery store of a different kind I buy them and try to grow them, some do and some don't. Where you live most would probably do a lot better than where I live. I have to cut the banana trees down to about 14 inches so I store the cut trunks against the southeast side of the house under the banana leaves and feed the whole thing (trunk and leaves) to them during the winter, And also if there are any of the elephant ear type leaves and stems left I do the same with them, Just enough mulch to keep from freezing and they do fine.

 

[Yvonne G]

You have given me some great information! I've always lost my banana trees to the frost. They come back the next spring, but now I will cut them back and save them for food. You are just plumb full of good ideas!!

 

[HLogic]

I don't think that is ñame. It belongs to the Dioscorea genus and is a vine. That more likely is malanga (Colocasia esculenta). But truthfully, that looks more like an Alocasia... Both malanga isleña and ñame, however, are great foodstuffs. For those of you in the south that do not get deep freezes in the winter, be warned. Malanga (a.k.a taro) can become rather invasive. If grown within a Manouria enclosure it is much less likely to get to that stage. Mine ate the foliage & then dug up the tubers!

 

[Len B]

I don't think that is ñame. It belongs to the Dioscorea genus and is a vine. That more likely is malanga (Colocasia esculenta). But truthfully, that looks more like an Alocasia... Both malanga isleña and ñame, however, are great foodstuffs. For those of you in the south that do not get deep freezes in the winter, be warned. Malanga (a.k.a taro) can become rather invasive. If grown within a Manouria enclosure it is much less likely to get to that stage. Mine ate the foliage & then dug up the tubers!

OK, I stopped at the grocery store today and they sold (but were out of) malanga so that is most likely what it is, They did have Jicama (not sure if i tried this one before) so I bought one to see if I can get it to grow.I do have one type of plant that is sold as Black Elephant Ear (more purple than black) and I can see how it could be invasive under the right conditions it has numerous runners that get up to 3 ft long and each will root a new plant.This year I am trying to get them to root in quart size storage bags filled with soil.Run it in one side and out the other and zip it closed in between while it is still attached to the mother plant.

 

[HLogic]

You can probably just cut the runner and root it separately. They are much like dandelions - leave one speck of the root in the dirt and another plant grows...

 

[Len B]

You can probably just cut the runner and root it separately. They are much like dandelions - leave one speck of the root in the dirt and another plant grows...

I didn't explain that the runners are above ground and stop somewhere along the way and root, I am adding a few pics so that you can see what I mean.--The bag rooting is working --

 

[Yvonne G]

OMG! You are so lucky to find those in your grocery store! I'd love to have that. I have to order mine online, then after the frost they're totally gone...frozen to mush. I DO have a couple of colocasia (I think) that come back every spring. You can see them in my "pond" picture. I was able to make about three new plants from that clump and plant them further around the pond. Next time I go to the store I'm going to look at their "roots." Seems to me they only have ginger though. Do you plant the ginger too?

 

[Len B]

The Blk elephant ears are from a nursery, they are a little more tender than the regular ears but I left them outside last winter and didn't lose any. but I do mulch them very heavy,I also put some in pots to keep in the garage just so I wont lose them all if something happens, The plants in the pic are only 2 years growth and I cut leaves off every day, plus I have given a lot of the new growth plants away.the leaves were bigger last year but we haven't had much rain this summer, and watering by the hose is not near as good as a natural rain, we haven't had any rain since the big rain that brought the baby box turtles out in August and most of that went to the river, Yes I do have ginger 2 types that I have to dig and store during cold weather.And horseradish which will grow anywhere, I had to dig it all up and pot it to control it, I like hot foods and horseradish is as close to wasabi that I will ever grow here, and some of the torts eat the leaves

 

[HLogic]

I see what you mean now Len! The Colocasia I have isn't quite as mature nor as large and only 'spawns' babies from short underground runners.

Yvonne, you should be able to find the tubers for taro, malanga and probably some other varieties at any Hispanic or Asian food market. Be mindful that yuca is not an elephant ear.

 

[Jacqui]

Len, is that what my black plant is? I am so impressed with it. For the longest time, I thought I had killed it. Then one day it started to grow and it quickly grew out several leaves in a very short time (seemed almost like over night. )

I have been looking for the yucca root in the store (rather then the wild ones), but haven't run across it. I see you use the ginger, so that one will get bought in the next home visit shopping time. Also yeah, you use horseradish, so that one can be added too. (so great to be able to use my tortoises as an excuse to get some horseradish growing. I love the stuff!)

Len, I have to say, the bag idea is a great one!

 

[Len B]

Len, is that what my black plant is? I am so impressed with it. For the longest time, I thought I had killed it. Then one day it started to grow and it quickly grew out several leaves in a very short time (seemed almost like over night. )

I have been looking for the yucca root in the store (rather then the wild ones), but haven't run across it. I see you use the ginger, so that one will get bought in the next home visit shopping time. Also yeah, you use horseradish, so that one can be added too. (so great to be able to use my tortoises as an excuse to get some horseradish growing. I love the stuff!)

Len, I have to say, the bag idea is a great one!

Yes Jacqui, They are the same plants.I will send you some more when I send the seeds.We still haven't had a frost yet, so I'm leaving everything in the ground as long as possible. I did cut some young runners off and put them in water and they are starting to root.So i am going to harvest the ones that aren't going to have time to root on their own and put them in water to root and plant in soil next spring.The bags worked real good next year I will start setting them up sooner.