Giant taro (Alocasia macrorrhizos)

Sente or bira or giant taro (Alocasia macrorrhizos) is a plant species in Araceae, a large terna that stands upright 1-3 m tall, tube stems and is green or white brown, produces large, edible tubers that are rich in carnohydrate or as a plant ornamental.

A. macrorrhizos has single leaves, width 0.9-1.8 m, length 0.6-1.2 m, thick and smooth, heart-shaped, curved base and pointed tip, green or blackish green, main bone in the middle and the minor bones go left and right.

Flower cranked, cylindrical in shape, appears on the armpits of leaves, 20-30 cm long stems and yellowish white. The fruit has a diameter of 5 cm and is green. The seeds have an elongated round shape, longitudinal grooves and are green in color. Generative and vegetative breeding.

Giant taro grows well in areas with lots of sun, clay soil that is rich in organic humus, moist and has a pool of water with a pH of 6.0 to 6.5. Generally it is found wild on the banks of rivers, on the edge of rice fields, ponds and wet places.

Bulbs are harvested after 1-2 years as a high-carbohydrate food source and have a higher starch content than all species in Alocasia. The nutritional content is 23.16% carbohydrate, 3.0% protein, 1.8% crude fiber, calcium, phosphorus and iron.

Sente contains saponins, flavonoids and polyphenols which are used to treat joint pain and cough. Lymph causes inflammation. The leaves and flowers contain calcium oxalate crystals that cause itchy mouth and stomach.

Kingdom: Plantae
Phylum: Tracheophyta
Subphylum: Angiospermae
Class: Liliopsida
Order: Alismatales
Family: Araceae
Subfamily: Aroideae
Tribe: Colocasieae
Genus: Alocasia
Species: Alocasia macrorrhizos

Six new species forming the Sumbana species group in genus Nemophora Hoffmannsegg 1798 from Indonesia

NEWS - Sumbawa longhorn ( Nemophora sumbana Kozlov, sp. nov.), Timor longhorn ( Nemophora timorella Kozlov, sp. nov.), shining shade longhorn ( Nemophora umbronitidella Kozlov, sp. nov.), Wegner longhorn ( Nemophora wegneri Kozlov, sp. nov.), long brush longhorn ( Nemophora longipeniculella Kozlov, sp. nov.), and short brush longhorn ( Nemophora brevipeniculella Kozlov, sp. nov.) from the Lesser Sunda Islands in Indonesia. The Lesser Sunda Islands consist of two parallel, linear oceanic island chains, including Bali, Lombok, Sumbawa, Flores, Sumba, Sawu, Timor, Alor, and Tanimbar. The oldest of these islands have been continuously occurring for 10–12 million years. This long period of isolation has allowed significant in situ diversification, making the Lesser Sundas home to many endemic species. This island chain may act as a two-way filter for organisms migrating between the world's two great biogeographic regions, Asia and Australia-Papua. The recognition of a striking cli...

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