Xanthosoma

''Xanthosoma'' is a genus of flowering plants in the arum family, Araceae. The genus is native to tropical America but widely cultivated and naturalized in other tropical regions.Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
/ref> Several are grown for their starchy corms, an important food staple of tropical regions, known variously as ''malanga'', ''otoy'', ''otoe'', cocoyam (or new cocoyam), ''tannia'', ''tannier'', ''yautía'', ''macabo'', ''ocumo'', ''macal'', ''taioba'', ''dasheen'', ''quequisque'', ''ʻape'' and (in Papua New Guinea) as Singapore taro (''taro kongkong''). Many other species, including especially '' Xanthosoma roseum'', are used as ornamental plants; in popular horticultural literature these species may be known as ‘ape due to resemblance to the true Polynesian ʻape, '' Alocasia macrorrhizos'', or as elephant ear from visual resemblance of the leaf to an elephant's ear. Sometimes the latter name is also applied to members in the closely related genera '' Caladium'', '' Colocasia'' (taro), and '' Alocasia''.

The leaves of most ''Xanthosoma'' species are long, sagittate (arrowhead-shaped) or subdivided into three or as many as 18 segments. Unlike the leaves of ''Colocasia'', those of ''Xanthosoma'' are usually not peltate- the upper v-notch extends into the point of attachment of the leaf petiole to the blade.

Reproduction

The inflorescence in ''Xanthosoma'' is composed of a spadix with pistillate flowers at the base, a belt of sterile flowers offered as a reward for pollinators in the middle and staminate flowers on the upper part. Prior to opening, the inflorescence is enclosed within a leaf-like spathe. When the inflorescence is ready to open, the upper part of the spathe opens and exposes the staminate area of the spadix; the basal area of the spathe remains closed, forming a spacious chamber (i.e., the spathe tube) that encloses the pistillate and sterile flowers ().

The inflorescences last for two nights and are protogynous in some species (though not others (), changing from the pistillate phase that attracts pollinators on the night it opens, to a staminate phase on the second night, when pollen is shed. When the inflorescence opens, it produces heat and releases a sweet scent attracting its pollinators, dynastine beetles ('' Cyclocephala'' spp.). Dynastines arrive covered with pollen from another inflorescence and remain in the spathe tube for 24 hours, pollinating the pistillate flowers as they feed on the sterile area of the spadix. On the second night, they come out of the tube and walk over the staminate flowers, getting covered with pollen, and then flying to a recently opened inflorescence nearby. ().
Fruit maturation takes several months. Fruits start to develop within the shelter of the spathe tube. When the infructescence
is mature, in some species, it arches back and downwards. In other species, it stays erect. Then, the tissue of the spathe tube rolls outwards, exhibiting the bright orange fruits and the velvety pink inner spathe surface.

Taxonomy

Species

The following species are accepted:
#''Xanthosoma acutum'' E.G.Gonç. - French Guiana, Amapá State of Brazil
#''Xanthosoma akkermansii'' (G.S.Bunting) Croat - Amazonas + Barinas States of Venezuela
#''Xanthosoma aristeguietae'' (G.S.Bunting) Madison - Venezuela, northwestern Brazil
#'' Xanthosoma auriculatum'' Regel - northwestern Brazil
#'' Xanthosoma baguense'' Croat - northern Peru
#''Xanthosoma bayo'' G.S.Bunting - Venezuela
#'' Xanthosoma belophyllum'' (Willd.) Kunth - Colombia, Venezuela, the Guianas; naturalized in Dominican Republic
#'' Xanthosoma bilineatum'' Rusby - Colombia
#''Xanthosoma bolivaranum'' G.S.Bunting - Venezuela
# '' Xanthosoma brasiliense'' (Desf.) Engl. – Tahitian spinach - Lesser Antilles, Puerto Rico, Hispaniola, Trinidad & Tobago; naturalized in southern Brazil
#'' Xanthosoma brevispathaceum'' Engl. - Peru
#'' Xanthosoma caladioides'' Grayum - Panama
# '' Xanthosoma caracu'' K.Koch & C.D.Bouché – yautia horqueta - Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic
#'' Xanthosoma caulotuberculatum'' G.S.Bunting - Venezuela
#'' Xanthosoma conspurcatum'' Schott - Venezuela, Suriname, French Guiana
#'' Xanthosoma contractum'' G.S.Bunting - Bolívar State of Venezuela
#'' Xanthosoma cordatum'' N.E.Br. - Guyana, French Guiana
#'' Xanthosoma cordifolium'' N.E.Br. - Guyana
#'' Xanthosoma cubense'' (Schott) Schott - Cuba
#''Xanthosoma daguense'' Engl. - Colombia, Ecuador
#'' Xanthosoma dealbatum'' Grayum - Costa Rica
# '' Xanthosoma eggersii'' Engl. - Ecuador
#'' Xanthosoma exiguum'' G.S.Bunting - Amazonas State of Venezuela
#'' Xanthosoma flavomaculatum'' Engl. - Colombia
#'' Xanthosoma fractum'' Madison - Peru
#'' Xanthosoma granvillei'' Croat & Thomps. - French Guiana
#'' Xanthosoma guttatum'' Croat & D.C.Bay - Valle del Cauca in Colombia
#'' Xanthosoma hebetatum'' Croat & D.C.Bay - Valle del Cauca in Colombia
# '' Xanthosoma helleborifolium'' (Jacq.) Schott – belembe silvestre - from Costa Rica south to central Brazil; naturalized in West Indies
# '' Xanthosoma herrerae'' Croat & P.Huang - Colombia
#'' Xanthosoma hylaeae'' Engl. & K.Krause - Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, northwestern Brazil
#'' Xanthosoma latestigmatum'' Bogner & E.G.Gonç. - Venezuela
#''Xanthosoma longilobum'' G.S.Bunting - Venezuela
#'' Xanthosoma lucens'' E.G.Gonç - Rondônia
#''Xanthosoma mafaffoides'' G.S.Bunting - Amazonas State of Venezuela
#'' Xanthosoma mariae'' Bogner & E.G.Gonç. - Peru
#'' Xanthosoma maroae'' G.S.Bunting - Amazonas State of Venezuela
#'' Xanthosoma maximiliani'' Schott - eastern Brazil
#'' Xanthosoma mendozae'' Matuda - México State in central México
# '' Xanthosoma mexicanum'' Liebm. - Chiapas, Oaxaca, Central America, Colombia, Venezuela
# '' Xanthosoma narinoense'' Bogner & L.P.Hannon - Colombia
#'' Xanthosoma nitidum'' G.S.Bunting - Venezuela
#†'' Xanthosoma obtusilobum'' Engl. - Mexico, probably extinct
#'' Xanthosoma orinocense'' G.S.Bunting - Amazonas State of Venezuela
#'' Xanthosoma paradoxum'' (Bogner & Mayo) Bogner - Colombia
#'' Xanthosoma pariense'' G.S.Bunting - Venezuela
#'' Xanthosoma peltatum'' G.S.Bunting - Venezuela
#'' Xanthosoma pentaphyllum'' (Schott) Engl. - Brazil
#'' Xanthosoma platylobum'' (Schott) Engl. - Brazil
#'' Xanthosoma plowmanii'' Bogner - Brazil
#'' Xanthosoma poeppigii'' Schott - Peru, Bolivia, northwestern Argentina
#'' Xanthosoma pottii'' E.G.Gonç. - Mato Grosso do Sul
#'' Xanthosoma puberulum'' Croat - Bolivia
# '' Xanthosoma pubescens'' Poepp. - Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, northwestern Brazil
#'' Xanthosoma pulchrum'' E.G.Gonç. - Mato Grosso
#'' Xanthosoma riedelianum'' (Schott) Schott - southeastern Brazil
#'' Xanthosoma riparium'' E.G.Gonç. - Goiás
# '' Xanthosoma robustum'' Schott – capote - Mexico, Central America; naturalized in Hawaii
# ''Xanthosoma sagittifolium'' (L.) Schott (Syn. '' Xanthosoma atrovirens'' K.Koch & C.D.Bouché, ''Xanthosoma violaceum'' Schott)- arrowleaf elephant ear, ''tiquizque'', , , or ''American taro'' - Costa Rica, Panama, Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Brazil; naturalized in West Indies, Africa, Bangladesh, Borneo, Malaysia, Christmas Island, Norfolk Island, some Pacific Islands, Alabama, Florida, Texas, Georgia, Oaxaca
#'' Xanthosoma saguasense'' G.S.Bunting - Venezuela
#'' Xanthosoma seideliae'' Croat - Bolivia
#'' Xanthosoma stenospathum'' Madison - Peru
# '' Xanthosoma striatipes'' (K.Koch & C.D.Bouché) Madison - Brazil, the Guianas, Venezuela, Colombia, Bolivia, Paraguay
#'' Xanthosoma striolatum'' Mart. ex Schott - French Guiana, northern Brazil
#'' Xanthosoma syngoniifolium'' Rusby - Bolivia, Argentina, Brazil
#'' Xanthosoma taioba'' E.G.Gonç. - Paraíba
#''Xanthosoma tarapotense'' Engl. - Peru
#'' Xanthosoma trichophyllum'' K.Krause - Peru, Ecuador
#'' Xanthosoma trilobum'' G.S.Bunting - Amazonas State of Venezuela
#'' Xanthosoma ulei'' Engl. - northwestern Brazil
# '' Xanthosoma undipes'' (K.Koch) K.Koch – tall elephant's ear - widespread from Bolivia north to southern Mexico and West Indies
# '' Xanthosoma viviparum'' Madison - Peru, Ecuador
# '' Xanthosoma weeksii'' Madison - Ecuador
# '' Xanthosoma wendlandii'' (Schott) Schott (syn. '' Xanthosoma hoffmannii'' Schott, '' Xanthosoma pedatum'' Hemsl.) Oaxaca, Central America, Venezuela
#'' Xanthosoma yucatanense'' Engl. - Yucatán, Quintana Roo

Deprecated

*'' Caladium lindenii'' (André) Madison (as ''X. lindenii'' (André) Engl.)

Etymology

The name is derived from the Greek words (), meaning 'yellow', and (), meaning 'body'. It refers to the stigma or yellow inner tissues.

Uses

Domestication of ''Xanthosoma'' species (especially '' X. sagittifolium'' but also ''X. atrovirens'', ''X. violaceum'', ''X. maffaffa'' and others) is thought to have originated in northern lowland South America, then spread to the Antilles and Mesoamerica. Today, ''Xanthosoma'' is still grown in all those regions, but is especially popular in Cuba, the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico, where it is used in ''alcapurrias'' or boiled. It is grown in Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana and Jamaica to make the popular ''callaloo'' dish. It is also grown in West Africa, now a major producer, where it can be used as a replacement for yams in a popular regional dish called ''fufu''. ''Xanthosoma'' is also grown as a crop in the Philippines.

Traditionally, ''Xanthosoma'' has been a subsistence crop with excess sold at local markets, but in the United States, large numbers of Latin American immigrants have created a market for commercial production. In general, production has yet to meet demand in some areas. In Polynesia, ''Alocasia macrorrhizos'' (‘ape) was considered a famine food, used only in the event of failure of the much preferred taro (''kalo'') crop. After having been introduced to Hawaiʻi in the 1920s from S. America, "Xanthosoma" has naturalized and has become more common than ''A. macrorrhizos'', and has adopted the same name, ʻape.

The typical ''Xanthosoma'' plant has a growing cycle of 9 to 11 months, during which time it produces a large stem called a corm, this surrounded by smaller edible ''cormels'' about the size of potatoes. These cormels (like the corm) are rich in starch. Their taste has been described as earthy and nutty, and they are a common ingredient in soups and stews. They may also be eaten grilled, fried, or puréed. The young, unfurled leaves of some varieties can be eaten as boiled leafy vegetables or used in soups and stews, such as the Caribbean ''callaloo''.

Flour made from ''Xanthosoma'' species is hypoallergenic.Vaneker, K
The Pomtajer.
Page 216 ''In'': Friedland, S. R., Ed. ''Vegetables: Proceedings of the Oxford Symposium on Food and Cooking 2008'': Volume 26 of ''Proceedings of the Oxford Symposium on Food and Cookery''. Oxford Symposium, 2009.

Gallery

File:Xanthosoma sagittifolium at Kadavoor.jpg, Inflorescence of ''Xanthosoma sagittifolium''
File:Inflo detail.jpg, Inflorescence of ''X. daguense''
File:Xanthosoma pollination.jpg, Beetle pollination in ''X. daguense''
File:Infruc Xanthosoma copy.jpg, Infructescence of ''X. poeppigii'' (Peruvian Amazonas); ''X. daguense'' (Western Cordillera of Los Andes, Colombia)

References

External links

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''Xanthosoma'' spp. at Purdue University, Center for New Crops & Plants Products



{{Taxonbar, from=Q763075

Araceae genera
Root vegetables
Leaf vegetables
Staple foods