Yacon / Peruvian Ground Apple
1 x rhizome / plant
This tall flowering perennial produces edible tubers which can be eaten raw or cooked. The tubers have a crunchy texture like apple and a unique flavour thats hard to describe but is something like a mixture of apple, cucumber and watermelon. The plant grows 1.5 to 2 metres tall and produces attractive sunflower like flowers. Once the plant dies back in winter, it can be dug up and separated into the reddish coloured rhizomes -to be kept for planting the following season - and the large brown tubers which can be eaten.
Store the collected rhizomes in a cool dark location in moistened peat moss so they don't dry out. Come Spring, they can be replanted out into the garden - plant rhizomes around 3-5cm below the soil. If you live in a climate with a relatively dry winter they can just be left in the ground until harvest.
Suitable for growing in nearly all climates.
They are frost sensitive so will die back in winter and shoot again in Spring. In warm or tropical climates plants may not die back at all, in this case harvest when flowering is finished.
Plants take approximately 6-7 months from planting to maturity.
Please see images 2 3 for examples of what you will receive.
At this time of year stems may die back after planting but don't discard, they will shoot again from the base either now or spring depending on your climate.
Note orders with plant items require plant shipping rates, orders with plants are shipped Monday-Tuesday only.