Yacon – Apple of the Earth!
Sunday, July 27, 2008 at 04:30PM 
With crispy, juicy, sweet flesh, the common name for Yacon is well fitting - ‘Apple of the Earth.’ We enjoyed eating these tasty tubers, which have a hint of ginger, in salads and fruit smoothies. They can also be juiced or used in stir-fries or curries. Most people prefer to peel the skin off before eating.
Yacon plants are hardy, attractive perennial herbs, native to Columbia and Ecuador. They reach 1-2 metres tall, with large dark green arrow shaped leaves. The foliage grows up from a central knobby pink/purple rhizome, while the tasty tubers grow down. They love well drained, rich loose soil. Propagation is by planting the rhizome or a part of the rhizome which has a shoot emerging.
The bounty of tubers is harvested when the foliage dies down in autumn or winter, and you can replant the knobbly rhizomes ready for another year.
Reader Comments (2)
Green harvest always seem to sell out of those quickly. If you've ever got a spare shoot next harvest or something...
No worries, we'll keep you in mind!