Polynesian Arrowroot, Pia

The information on this plant is quite incomplete. Propagation is via tubers. I have a number of plants, which do well in pots. growth is...Read More seasonal, much of the year the underground tuber is dormant. Flowers do not produce seeds in Hawai'i (perhaps limited by lack of pollinators). Flowers are produced once a season in a single inflorescence atop a tall stalk. A good year produces multiple small side tubers underground, each of which can produce an individual plant in subsequent seasons. Typically one large multi-lobed leaf is sent out per growing season. Occasionally two or perhaps three leaves might emerge, especially if the flower bud is nipped (to save the plant from wasted energy on flowers that never bear viable seeds).

Someone gave me a tuber for this plant yesterday - it has a tiny little sprout - it is considered one of the Hawaiian 'canoe plants' - pl...Read Moreants brought by the early Polynesians who settled the Hawaiian Islands - they called it 'Pia' and the tubers were used for making starch for puddings, etc. It was the original starch used for the traditional Hawaiian coconut pudding called haupia. Has anyone had experience growing it? I will be planting it tomorrow but have no idea what to expect.

Pia - Tacca leontopetaloides -
http://www.canoeplants.com/pia.html