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Yacén
s the outdoors cools, darkens
Agnd dampens, we might think
bout retiring inside for more of
the day, perhaps with something rich
and sweet. Hibernation protects cer-
tain animals’ metabolic processes from
cold and reduced caloric intake, and
we are no less subject to it despite our
houses, woolens and fleece. ,
Our climate doesn’t spoil Olympic
Peninsuleers for choice in producing
rich sweetness. We have a '
limited ability to make an
excellent maple syrup from
our bigleaf maples. Where we
are able to provide them ad-
equate nectary, we can‘raise
bees. But the easiest method
comes from the Andes, where
a yam-size tuber called yacon
(ya-KON) offers winter sus-
Yacén, a yam-size
tuber, offers winter
sustenance and sweet
syrup in abundance.
This bulky root tastes
like a combination of
apple, pear and celery.
Journal photo by Alex
Féthiere
tubers (up to 20” long), the crown,
a cluster of unpalatable fibrous rhi—
zomes, is separated, from the tubers
and divided to make further propa- ,
gules. These are sown to make anoth-
er yacon plant. One yacon over time
could produce a field of plants; indeed,
this clonal method is more effective
than seed and has been responsible
for most of yacén’s spread.
Whether harvested or bought, I’ve
« planted these rhizbmes below
an inch of soil in spring. They
do well in tilled, amended
ground and insanely well
in raised beds, where they
produce 8’+ plants. Because
they dominated my beds this
year I’ll be proceeding with
in-groundplanting.
I have struggled with
tenance and sweet syrup in clonal propagation, mainly
abundance. because slugs can destroy
This bulky root tastes young yacon' in spring. Most
like a combination of apple,
pear and celery. Some of mine have
had hints of watermelon. Its texture
of water chestnut or jicama has been
delicious in winter salads. It keeps '
well when sliced without browning or
losing its delightful crunch. I’ve read
that it keeps this texture even when
stewed, though I have always emptied
my reserves into salads.
Andean tubers love our climate;
the best-known example is the potato,
of which Washington is the nation’s
second-largest producer. Annuals like
potatoes need to be rotationally plant-
ed to prevent disease buildup such as
the mosaic virus. Perennial root vege—
tables offer the greatest sustainability
and flexibility. '
This is not to say that yacon is im- -'
mune to viruses. The indefatigable
plant breeder Cultivariable in Moclips
reports that tomato spotted Wilt has
affected its yacén, and that yacon ne-
crotic mottle virus has impacted crops
‘ in South Korea and the European
Union.
This still appears to be less of a
problem than it is in potatoes, which
have been more extensively bred for a
longer time, undermining their immu-
nities in the service of desirable food
traits. Yacén’s wild populations in
Colombia, Ecuador and Peru may still
be contributing resilience to domestic
plantings there.
My solution to disease vulnerability
has been to rotate the crown divisions.
Even with perennials, I’ like to be '
"cautious: isolating individual plants,
slowly spreading their divisions, and
uprooting establishments after a few
years.
When harvesting the massive
years have been good for my
yacén on Harstine Island. (Last year
was terrible.) This has been a boom '
year from which I expect to save a
few very large crowns and innumer-
able tubers. I am afraid to dig up the
bundles because I’m not sure I can
store them all. I continue to experi-
ment with in-ground storage, having
suffered no mole or vole losses.
Recent early frosts have made me
unsure about yields. The 8’ tall aerial
growths, with their palm-size spread-
ing leaf umbrellas, may have protect-
ed the bulging tuber bases. Frost dam-
age shows on many leaves. In such
circumstances, hilling soil over the
tubers is a good idea, protecting them
until a late November/early December
harvest for maximum development.
Should you be saddled with more
yacon than you can eat or store, mak-
ing syrup is an option I may yet ex-
plore. It has been touted as a dietary
supplement and low-calorie alterna-
tive sweetener, as well as a prebiotic
full of immune-enhancing and
‘ anticancer compounds: Prebiotics like
inulin (present in sunchokes, burdock
root and chicory root) and fructooligo-
saccharides (in ya‘cén, agave and Alli-
ums —— onions, garlic, leeks) have ex-
citing implications for'digestive health
as well as home fermentation think
sauerkraut, kimchi, kefir, kombucha ,
— and food storage. I look forward to
sharing the bounty!
I Alex Féthiére has lived on Harst-'
ine Island long-enough to forget New
York City, where he built community
gardens and double-dug his suburban
sod into a victory garden. He can be
reached at onlandist@gmail.com.
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