[Cir. 127— C] 



THE DASHEEN, A ROOT CROP FOR THE SOUTHERN STATES/ 



By Robert A. Young, Scientijic Assistant, Office of Foreign Seed and Plant Intro- 

 duction. 



INTRODUCTION. 



While Mr. O. W. Barrett was connected with the Porto Rico Agri- 

 cultural Expeiiment vStation previous to 1905, he brought together 

 and grew a large collection of the tuberous-rooted aroids which are 

 important food plants of the Tropics. He drew attention to the pos- 

 sibilities of these aroids in a bulletin published in 1905,^ and when he 

 entered the Office of Foreign Seed and Plant Introduction he assem- 

 bled a still larger collection from different parts of the world. Several 

 field trials of them were made at Gotha, Fla., and Gough, S. C. The 

 results of these early experiments in the United States were published 

 in 1910.^ 



As a result of these preliminary trials, in which, naturally, many of 

 the introduced varieties failed, one of. the forms, the dasheen, proved 

 to be of unusual promise. 



This paper deals with some of the more important features of the 

 field experiments with the dasheen under the writer's direct super- 

 vision, as well as some greenhouse experiments in the production of 

 blanched shoots, and with the results of many experiments in the 

 cooking and preparation of the shoots and tubers for the table. 



In 1909, from a small experimental plat grown near Charleston, 

 S. C, it became apparent that the dasheens, which are closely allied 

 to the taros of Hawaii, China, and Polynesia, were well adapted for 

 culture in certain of the moist lands of the South. Since that time 

 the endeavor has been to propagate a stock of the best varieties 

 sufficient to make possible their distribution on a large scale. Certain 

 varieties secured originally from the island of Trinidad and other 

 parts of the West Indies were found to be satisfactory in 3deld and to 

 be of higher quality than others in the collection. These are the 

 varieties to which particular attention is now being given, though 

 many others are under investigation. 



1 Issued May 17, 1913. 



2 Barrett, O. W. The yautias, or taniers, of Forto Rico. Porlo Rico .Vgricultural Experiment Station, 

 Bulletin 6, 27 p., 4 pi., 1905. 



3 Barrett, O. W., andCooli.O. F. Promisingroot crops for the South. U. S. Department of Agriculture, 

 Bureau of Plant Industry, Bulletin 164, 43 p., 1910. 



[Cir. 127] 25 



