Eetbare tuin-edible garden Smallanthus sonchifolius - Yacon

• Article number: SMASON02

Smallanthus sonchifolius or Polymnia sonchifolia also known as Yacon. Originally this plant comes from Bolivia and the Andes mountains.
The plant is up to 150 cm high and has large leaves.
In the late summer there can also be a large yellow flowers in the plant, these are very similar to a sunflower (the sunflower is a distant relative).
From August / September, yacon makes 10 to 20 tubers underground. Sometimes around 10 kg per plant is harvested.

The tubers are ripe for harvest in the late autumn, usually after the first night frost. A sign to harvest is the moment the leaves begin to die off.
The tubers have some resemblance to a dahlia tuber. There are eel tubers and so-called breeding tubers. The tubers (often light purple in color and much smaller) can overwinter in a cool place. Breed tubers can be planted again in the spring for a new harvest.
Breed tubers are much smaller than the food tubers. Eat tubers are also much smoother.
You can simply plant the tubers in the garden of your vegetable garden or garden, but you can also harvest in a large pot.

You can store the harvested tubers in a cool place all winter. They also become sweeter when they are eaten a few weeks or longer after harvesting, the taste then rises to sweet pineapple.
The tuber taste a bit like a mix of apple and pear, is tasty crispy and sweet and juicy and very tasty. They can be eaten raw and are deliciously fresh, the taste tends to sweet watermelon, apple and pear.
The Yacon can also be fried, fried or cooked, various recipes can be found on the internet. Is also delicious as an oven dish with Roquefort! Or as a fresh cold dish.
Yacon is also safely edible by diabetics, the sweet taste comes from the substance oligofructose. This substance stimulates for our body. Yacon contains very few calories.
The leaves of the plant can be dried and possibly green tea can be put.
Winter hardiness zone 10 (1ºC).