Recent from talks
Amorphophallus paeoniifolius
Knowledge base stats:
Talk channels stats:
Members stats:
Amorphophallus paeoniifolius
Amorphophallus paeoniifolius, commonly known as the elephant foot yam or whitespot giant arum, is a tropical plant native to Island Southeast Asia. It is cultivated for its edible tubers in Southeast Asia, South Asia, Madagascar, New Guinea, and the Pacific islands. Because of its production potential and popularity as a vegetable in various cuisines, it can be raised as a cash crop. The plant and its tuber are also known as suran or jimmikand.
The elephant foot yam is used as food in Island Southeast Asia, Mainland Southeast Asia, South Asia, New Guinea, Oceania, and Madagascar. Its origin and center of domestication was formerly considered to be India, where it is most widely utilized as a food resource. But a genetic study in 2017 has shown that Indian populations of elephant foot yams have lower genetic diversity than those in Island Southeast Asia, therefore it is now believed that elephant foot yams originated from Island Southeast Asia and spread westwards into Thailand and India, resulting in three independent domestication events. From Island Southeast Asia, they were also spread even further west into Madagascar, and eastwards to coastal New Guinea and Oceania by the Austronesian migrations, though they may have spread south into Australia without human intervention.
Amorphophallus paeoniifolius is a large tuberous herb reaching up to 2 m (6 ft 7 in) tall when in leaf phase, and the tuber may be 30 cm (12 in) wide, 20 cm (7.9 in) high and weigh up to 15 kg (33 lb).
The plant blooms annually around the beginning of the rainy season. The flower bud emerges from the corm as a purple shoot, and later blooms as a purple inflorescence. The pistillate (female) and staminate (male) flowers are on the same plant and are crowded in cylindrical masses as an inflorescence. The top part is responsible for secreting mucus that gives off a putrid, pungent smell that is used to attract pollinating insects, the middle part of the inflorescence contains staminate flowers, and the base of the inflorescence contains pistillate flowers. The stigmas of the female flowers will be receptive on the first day of the bloom, when the pungent smell draws pollinating insects inside, and the inflorescence closes, trapping them for a night to allow the pollen deposited on the insect to be transferred to the stigmas.[citation needed]
Later in the second day, the female flower is no longer receptive to pollens, the male flowers start to bloom, and the inflorescence opens again. This allows the pollen to be deposited on the emerging insects to pollinate other flowers, while preventing the pollen from the same inflorescence fertilising itself, preventing inbreeding.[citation needed]
In 24–36 hours, after the first bloom of the inflorescence, the inflorescence's female flowers start developing into berries bright red fruiting bodies, and other parts of the inflorescence start wilting away. The berries are red when ripe and are not quite round, being subglobose or ovoid.
While the flowers are in bloom they also produce heat.
In Indian state of West Bengal, Assam and in neighbouring country Bangladesh, it is called ol (ওল/ওল কচু). It is usually eaten as mashed or fried or added to curries and, more rarely, used in pickle or to make ol chips. In some households, the green leaves and stems are also cooked as green vegetables.
Hub AI
Amorphophallus paeoniifolius AI simulator
(@Amorphophallus paeoniifolius_simulator)
Amorphophallus paeoniifolius
Amorphophallus paeoniifolius, commonly known as the elephant foot yam or whitespot giant arum, is a tropical plant native to Island Southeast Asia. It is cultivated for its edible tubers in Southeast Asia, South Asia, Madagascar, New Guinea, and the Pacific islands. Because of its production potential and popularity as a vegetable in various cuisines, it can be raised as a cash crop. The plant and its tuber are also known as suran or jimmikand.
The elephant foot yam is used as food in Island Southeast Asia, Mainland Southeast Asia, South Asia, New Guinea, Oceania, and Madagascar. Its origin and center of domestication was formerly considered to be India, where it is most widely utilized as a food resource. But a genetic study in 2017 has shown that Indian populations of elephant foot yams have lower genetic diversity than those in Island Southeast Asia, therefore it is now believed that elephant foot yams originated from Island Southeast Asia and spread westwards into Thailand and India, resulting in three independent domestication events. From Island Southeast Asia, they were also spread even further west into Madagascar, and eastwards to coastal New Guinea and Oceania by the Austronesian migrations, though they may have spread south into Australia without human intervention.
Amorphophallus paeoniifolius is a large tuberous herb reaching up to 2 m (6 ft 7 in) tall when in leaf phase, and the tuber may be 30 cm (12 in) wide, 20 cm (7.9 in) high and weigh up to 15 kg (33 lb).
The plant blooms annually around the beginning of the rainy season. The flower bud emerges from the corm as a purple shoot, and later blooms as a purple inflorescence. The pistillate (female) and staminate (male) flowers are on the same plant and are crowded in cylindrical masses as an inflorescence. The top part is responsible for secreting mucus that gives off a putrid, pungent smell that is used to attract pollinating insects, the middle part of the inflorescence contains staminate flowers, and the base of the inflorescence contains pistillate flowers. The stigmas of the female flowers will be receptive on the first day of the bloom, when the pungent smell draws pollinating insects inside, and the inflorescence closes, trapping them for a night to allow the pollen deposited on the insect to be transferred to the stigmas.[citation needed]
Later in the second day, the female flower is no longer receptive to pollens, the male flowers start to bloom, and the inflorescence opens again. This allows the pollen to be deposited on the emerging insects to pollinate other flowers, while preventing the pollen from the same inflorescence fertilising itself, preventing inbreeding.[citation needed]
In 24–36 hours, after the first bloom of the inflorescence, the inflorescence's female flowers start developing into berries bright red fruiting bodies, and other parts of the inflorescence start wilting away. The berries are red when ripe and are not quite round, being subglobose or ovoid.
While the flowers are in bloom they also produce heat.
In Indian state of West Bengal, Assam and in neighbouring country Bangladesh, it is called ol (ওল/ওল কচু). It is usually eaten as mashed or fried or added to curries and, more rarely, used in pickle or to make ol chips. In some households, the green leaves and stems are also cooked as green vegetables.
Recent media