JOURNAL 
OF 
The New York Botanical Garden 
VoL. XIV October, 1913 No. 166 
THE DASHEEN 
With Plate CXXV 
The tuberous aroid now known in the United States and parts 
of the West Indies as the dasheen belongs to a section of the 
Araceae containing a number of plants which for thousands of 
years have been of very great importance as sources of food in 
tropical countries. The taro, of the islands of the Pacific and 
of southeastern Asia, is the most widely known of these plants, 
and to this the dasheen is more nearly related than to any other; 
in fact, it would probably be correct to say that the dasheen is a 
kind of taro. Both belong unquestionably to the genus Colocasia, 
but because of the diversity of forms of each, and the compara- 
tively small amount of botanical study that has been given to 
this genus, the writer refrains from attempting to use specific 
names 
The yautia, of which there are several species and varieties, 
belonging to the genus serail constitutes another section 
of this group of valuable plan 
This genus is believed by ae to be of strictly American 
origin though a number of varieties are now to be found in culti- 
vation in many other parts of the tropical world. For various 
reasons, including the greater length of season required by the 
yautia to mature, it has not been found so well adapted as the 
dasheen for culture and use in the southern states. Other genera 
also furnish food plants, but of less importance 
[Journat for September, 1913 (14: 157-166), was issued October 7, 1913.] 
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