Growth and Development of Wetland-grown Taro under Different Plant Populations and Seedbed Types in Uganda

Taro [Colocasia esculenta (L.) Schott] is a member of the Araceace family that is a staple food for many people in developing countries in Africa, Asia and the Pacific Islands. It is widely grown in Uganda but the extent of its production and consumption is not known, partly because it has been ignored as legitimate crop for research and development (R&D), and it is managed outside the conventional agricultural production, marketing and economic channels. Therefore, there is limited information on many aspects of taro, including agronomic practices. In order obtain data that can support improved and sustainable taro production, a field trial was conducted over two cropping seasons at Kabanyolo in central Uganda, to determine the effect of three taro plant populations (10,000, 17,760 and 40,000 pph) and two seedbed types (flat and ridged seedbed) on growth and yield of taro. The treatments were arranged in a split – split – plots design, with three replications. Seedbed type was in the main plot and plant populations in the sub-plots. These were further split to accommodate five sampling dates for plant growth. Each experimental subplot measured 6 m x 6 m and contained 36, 64 and 144 experimental plants, respectively. During a 5-month growth period, leaf area index (LAI) and corm yield were significantly (P < 0.05) higher in closely spaced plants (high plant population). Seedbed type had no (P>0.05) effect on taro growth and yield. However, using high plant population may not be recommended because of the enormous amount of planting material that would be needed. From this study, a moderately wide spacing of 0.75 m x 0.75 m which produced an acceptable yield of 5.5 – 6.8 t ha-1 would be recommended.