Quote:
Originally Posted by David Hill
On 27/03/2015 17:34, Bob Hobden wrote:
"Nick Maclaren" wrote
Bob Hobden wrote:
Bought some Oca (Oxalis tuberosa) to grow this year, anyone with
experience
of growing this in the UK?
Also bought Mashua (Tropaeolum tuberosum) to try, both for it's
flowers and
the edible tubers (not that I might eat many considering their
reputation!)
What reputation?
I have grown both. Oca straggles badly, but the tubers don't really
start growing until the days shorten, so they don't get very large with
me. It is a very pleasant, slightly acidic, potato-like object.
I didn't eat the latter, because I didn't know it was edible at the
time, but it grows well and is quite pretty.
The tubers of both are very sensitive to frost.
Thanks Nick, we will see how Oca does on our heavy acidic soil and
neither of us has eaten it so it will be interesting. As for Mashua, it
has the reputation of having the same effect as Bromide in the tea. :-)
or should that be :-( .
You might find it easier to grow Oca in large pots, it's easier to find
the tubers
|
I have grown oca for a few years now, initially to see what they were like and to keep a few tubers for the following year. I start them off in pots in the greenhouse in March, and plant them out when there is no risk of frost. The best way to plant them is a bit like potatoes in mounds. Potatoes are planted at the bottom of the mound, oca you plant at the top. Just make a hole big enough to take the rooted plant. You really need about 30 inches between rows. As the plant grows, the top tends to fall over and usually about half to each side. Being in a mound makes it easier to find the tubers when you dig them out.. You leave them in the ground until about 4 weeks after the tops have been killed by frost. This gives the tubers a chance to grow to a reasonable size. They keep well in a cool place, and unlike potatoes, do not go green in light. They don't need to be peeled to be eaten.