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If farmers want a good taro harvest, they must have good taro seedlings Participatory high-quality seedling selection and cultivation management is close to the needs of farmers in the region

In response to the taro industry's demand for high-quality and healthy taro seedlings, Taiwan Seed Improvement and Propagation Station (TSIPS) cooperate with Taichung City Daan Farmers Association to develop high-quality taro seedlings with a participatory selection and cultivation management model since 2020. This model can enable farmers to effectively reduce the use of chemical control agents (kasugamycin + copper oxychloride) in the initial cultivation stage. As well as to reduce the proportion of missing plants and replanting by up to 3 times, and the quality of the taro produced is better than that of farmers's self-kept seedlings .

TSIPS mentioned that Taiwan taro cultivation area is nearly 2,400 hectares and the annual demand for taro seedlings exceeds 95 million. Traditional taro seedlings are propagated by farmers themselves from runner seedlings in the same field to produce taro. However, field test results show that up to 25% of the seedlings are infected with pathogens including taro leaf blight, bacterial soft rot or white rot which have a great impact on taro yield and quality.

TSIPS pointed out that the participatory selection and cultivation management model starts with the selection of "good taro seeds". The TSIPS experts choose good taro plants with the taro production experts from the Daan Farmers Association in the taro production field. Then, use molecular biological detection technology to screen plants without specific virus infection. These materials are then quantitatively propagated by tissue culture. After acclimatization, taro seedlings are planted and propagated in well-isolated environments. The seedlings production from above mention mode can prevent from carrying soil-borne microbial pathogens, viral pathogens and pests. When the seedlings are returned to the farmers' fields for planting, the high-quality genes can be propagated.

TSIPS said that under the cooperation with the Taichung Daan Farmers Association, healthy taro seedlings have been trial planted and promoted in the Daan area of ​​Taichung. In the future, we hope to expand to more production areas, so that farmers can use good taro seedlings to grow top-quality taro. In central Taiwan, it is now the taro harvest season. Please come and support domestic high-quality taro!

Fig. 1. Production of healthy tissue-cultured seedlings of specific pathogen-free taro.
Fig. 1. Production of healthy tissue-cultured seedlings of specific pathogen-free taro.

Fig. 2. Trial cultivation of healthy taro seedlings without specific pathogens
Fig. 2. Trial cultivation of healthy taro seedlings without specific pathogens