This article provides an overview over taxonomy, distribution, cultivation and use of giant taro, Alocasia macrorrhizos (L.) G.Don. The species belongs to the Araceae (aroid) family, which consists of 3700 species grouped into 107 genera. Among those species are several important crop species from tropical Asia and America. Giant taro, with a thick stem, large leaves and inflorescences, is cultivated as a food crop in several...

Northern Italy is an area particularly suitable for the cultivation of different crops. It used to be characterized by a high agrobiodiversity. However, it is estimated that over the last decades, this area experienced a genetic erosion of more than 90%, resulting in the loss of many traditional plant genetic resources (PGR). Nevertheless, recent surveys found an unexpectedly high agrobiodiversity which remains. The presented...

Key message Bet-hedging is a complex evolutionary strategy involving morphological, eco-physiological, (epi)genetic and population dynamics aspects. We review these aspects in flowering plants and propose further research needed for this topic. Bet-hedging is an evolutionary strategy that reduces the temporal variance in fitness at the expense of a lowered arithmetic mean fitness. It has evolved in organisms subjected to varia...

Seed conservation in rural communities of low- and middle-income countries located in tropical areas is particularly problematic, due to high relative humidity that promotes insect and fungal infestations and leads to rapid losses in seed viability. Seed conservation in those areas is affected by unreliable power supplies that do not allow the use of dehumidifying and refrigeration systems recommended for the long-term storage...