Taro is new to gardens in Central Europe. Of course it was known, but it was considered a tropical plant suitable only for the connoisseur with a heated greenhouse. It is a different situation the USA, there it is a widely used garden plant, even in the cooler regions. Also in Central Europe it can be successfully cultivated in garden during the summer months. Due to its rampant growth it develops into a true show stopper in no time. There is hardly another plant available that can add such a tropical touch to your border or your pond. During winter you treat it like Dahlias: after the first frost dig out the tubers and store them cool and dry inside the house. In spring they will start to grow again as soon as they get enough sunlight and water.

`Black Marble` is a rare Taro, for it is not easy to propagate. It is a sport of `Burgundy Stem` and its olive green leaves bear an unregular pattern in purple. No two leaves are alike and unfortunatelly the pattern isn`t steady. During propagation a certain amount of the young plants drop back to the original variety. As a result most nurseries do not keep this variety. We liked the pattern so much that we decided to propagate the variety anyway.