PNG13
A leaf blight tolerant taro variety
Outstanding Qualities
Highly tolerant to taro leaf blight disease
High yield potential
Prolific sucker production
Dual-purpose variety
PNG13, a taro variety (Colocasia esculenta var. esculenta) commonly known as ‘Arouille violette’, was introduced from the Centre for Pacific Crops and Trees (CePaCT), Fiji, in 2013. It is highly tolerant to taro leaf blight disease (TLB) caused by Phytophthora colocasiae and thrives best in humid and super-humid regions. PNG13 has a high yield potential comparable to the local variety. The corm is cylindrical with white flesh colour. The variety produces a high number of suckers compared to the local variety which produces stolons. Due to its dense foliage and petiole colour, it can also be used as a leafy vegetable and is thus, recommended as a dual-purpose variety.
Characteristics of PNG13 | |
Plant height (cm) | Tall (>100)* |
Plant span (cm) | Wide (>100)* |
Number of suckers per plant | 15 – 20* |
Leaf blade colour | Dark green |
Petiole colour Top Third Middle Third |
Light green Light brown |
Flower colour | Yellow |
Corm shape | Cylindrical* |
Corm cortex colour | Pink |
Corm flesh colour (central part) | White |
Corm length (cm) | 11 – 16* |
Corm diameter (cm) | 8 – 9.5* |
Corm weight (g) | 300 – 600* |
Corm dry matter content (%) | 38.7* |
Time to maturity (months) | 9* |
Yield (t/ha) | 10 – 20* |
Tolerance to taro leaf blight | Highly tolerant |