Colocasia esculenta Mojito

The Colocasia 'Mojito' is a cultivar of Elephant's Ear distinguished by its speckled, splashed, maculated, and marbled foliage in various shades of green, grey, and black. This plant with bright, sophisticated, grandiose variegated foliage, shaped like an elongated heart, is truly captivating. Somewhat hardy, this perennial of tropical origin can withstand up to -8°C in the ground, under a thick protective mulch. It is an absolutely stunning plant, essential for creating a lush and exotic garden setting, particularly along a pond bank. It also makes a beautiful feature to enhance a terrace or conservatory.

The Colocasia 'Mojito' is a horticultural creation by Agri-Starts, Ty Richard Strode (USA), dating back to 2007. It is a descendant of Colocasia esculenta 'Midnight'. Likely originating from India, its ancestor, the Colocasia esculenta also known as Edible Taro or Taro, spread long ago in tropical regions of South America and Oceania, and later in tropical Africa. This rhizomatous perennial plant is a relative of Arums and Ipomoeas, belonging to the Araceae family. The 'Mojito' cultivar is an imposing perennial herbaceous plant, growing from a tuberous rhizome that forms a scaly corm, covered with a thick skin. The mature plant often exceeds 1.20 m in height by 1.20 m in diameter. It features magnificent peltate foliage, shaped like a arrowhead, with variable colours and patterns, but in a range of green and grey tones extending to dull black. The leaf blade can reach 80 cm in length by 50 cm in width, carried by a long petiole streaked with reddish-brown and green, sheathing at the base. The leaf surface repels water well, possessing good water-shedding properties. During its growth, the plant produces very few shoots, but the root thickens year by year, allowing it to remain compact. By removing an old leaf, two new ones take its place. The vegetation is destroyed by frost, but the plant regrows, quite late in spring, from its almost dry stump.

In the garden, on the terrace, or indoors, the Colocasia 'Mojito' is an impressive plant, yet relatively easy to grow in rich, moist soil. It thrives in a sunny to semi-shady location and shows semi-hardiness under a thick protective mulch, quite a feat for a tropical plant! It stands out as a focal point in a contemporary or exotic setting, whether on a terrace in a large container or along water features in favourable climates. This voracious plant pairs well with arums, banana trees, Gunnera, or tree ferns whose magnificence evokes primeval jungles. Some gardeners dig up the stump after the first frost, overwinter it in a dark storage area, then replant it in April-May in a mix of garden soil and compost.

True taro (Colocasia esculenta) is consumed in Africa, China, Polynesia, and various other parts of the world. Its tubers, rich in starch, and young leaves are consumed like spinach.