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[NuclearDruid]

Keeping you yacon crown viable through the winter (applies only to areas where the ground freezes).

1. Dig the entire plant when a freeze has killed the top, but before the ground freezes. Cut back the tops to the ground. Using a garden fork, starting loosening the soil a foot away from the center of the plant. Complete the entire circle around the plant.

2. With the soil loosened, pick a side and shove the garden fork as far beneath the plant as you can. Lever the crown up out of the ground using multiple jerking steps to cause the loosened soil to break away and fall from the tubers and crown.

3. Lift the entire crown into a wheelbarrow and take to a water hose to rinse the remaining soil away from the plant.

4. With a sharp knife, separate the "sweet potato-shaped" tubers away from the crown. These will vary in size from a golf ball to a rather large sweet potato. These are the edible parts.

5. Place the crown in a bucket/bin with slightly moist peat moss (wood chips, decayed straw, etc) and cover. Place the container is a cool place (but not capable of freezing) until about 6 weeks before last frost date in your area.

In spring, treat the crown as mentioned earlier in this thread.

Good luck!
ND

[amagi]

Thanks!  I did it wrong.  Probably not too late to fix it.
I ate a couple tubers and they are yum.  How much of the crown has to stay in the pot and how much can I eat?

[NuclearDruid]

Amagi, anything without a sprout on it is edible. The sprouts occur very close to the main body.

There are some pictures here:(not ours)http://www.ourhappyacres.com/2009/11/i-dig-yacon/

Your crown is pretty large. If you have already potted it, I suggest that you take a sharp knife and run it right down the center. Keep half of it in the pot and see what happens and store the other half as I previous mentioned.

ND

[amagi]

Will do. Thanks!

[NuclearDruid]

I have four extra plants this year looking for adoption. PM Mutti and me if interested.

ND

[amagi]

OK, so I did not take care of my Yacon as instructed. I put it in a paper bag in the basement with the potatoes and forgot about it until late February.  At that point I got it out and it was pretty shrivelled but not dead.  I cut it in two, took off all the mouldy parts and planted both pieces in a pot.  I kept that with the house plants under lights until the porch was 40 or warmer at night.  It took a really long time to do anything, but now there are lots of leaves coming up.

Do I plant it like it is?  Does it like really rich soil or less?  How warm should the soil be to plant?  I am guessing warmer than it is now up here.  How far will the tubers spread?  Does it companion well with anything?  The bed I am considering has peppermint and lemon balm in it, but there is another one with nothing so far.

[NuclearDruid]

If its got leaves, then you must have done something right. I'd plant it out when you normally would transplant your tomatoes and peppers. Mine grows in clay soil. It does prefer warmer weather. Regarding companion planting, I don't know. I've never tried it. The tubers will spread about 12 inches from the center of the plant. I normally dig with a potato fork and loosen the soil in a circle around the plant before trying to lift it out of the ground.

[Yuki]

Are you guys still handing these suckers out?

[NuclearDruid]

Yep. Should have plenty for spring planting.

ND

[amagi]

I managed to kill mine with a lack of water or something. I put it in a tire stack near the potatoes tire stacks.  I would like to try again.  We are moving this spring but I'll try anyway. I can bring it with.    This time I'll plant it in the ground  But it will be whatever soil the new house has.  There won't be time to test and amend it anyway.

[Yuki]

Yep. Should have plenty for spring planting.

ND

I'd like to try it out this year...

It should grow well here in Ohio clay...