Oca
Oxalis tuberosa
Oxalis tuberosa is a perennial herbaceous plant that overwinters as underground stem tubers. These tubers are known as uqa in Quechua, oca in Spanish, yams in New Zealand and several other alternative names. The plant was brought into cultivation in the central and southern Andes for its tubers, which are used as a root vegetable. The plant is not known in the wild, but populations of wild Oxalis species that bear smaller tubers are known from four areas of the central Andean region. Oca was introduced to Europe in 1830 as a competitor to the potato, and to New Zealand as early as 1860.
Description from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA).
At a glance
- Sunlight
- Full sun
- Water need
- Medium
- Mature height
- 0.3 m
- Maintenance
- Low
- Hardiness
- USDA 7–10
- Layers
- root, groundcover
Functional roles
Propagation
How to make more of this plant for free — the permaculture way.
When: Plant tubers late spring
Andean tuber that bulks up after the autumn equinox; lift after the first frost.
Where to get it
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Seed data pending expert review. Identification photo and description are sourced from Wikipedia/Wikimedia; always confirm a plant in person before eating any part of it.