Next week the predicted night time temperture is -6 my oc is protected with fleece but should I dig it up ?
Why is it protected in the first place?
Oca needs the frosts - the foliage collapses and the tubers suck the starch back down the stems and 2-4 weeks later, the tubers have doubled in size and that's when you dig them up.
The oca does not get lifted until the top growth has been frosted and it has completely died down. Second or third wekk in december is a useful guide for digging them up.
Like philistine I have mine covered because I read they have to have as long as possible growing frost free after the autumn equinox.
So perhaps now is the time to uncover them in order to expose them to frost with a view to harvest at the suggested time.
I must say I am really looking forward to them. They could be an easier alternative to growing new potatoes for Xmas.
Be careful if you cover them. I did last year and the slugs had a field day.
Quote from: aj on November 26, 2012, 23:23:06
Why is it protected in the first place?
Oca needs the frosts - the foliage collapses and the tubers suck the starch back down the stems and 2-4 weeks later, the tubers have doubled in size and that's when you dig them up.
I'm not convinced AJ was looking at real frost - the 'bush' can collapse when the leaves fall off because of cold - but when actual frost makes the stems go translucent they are dead, dead, dead - and the starch rots where it lies.
What oca need is
time - they are very very late cropping.
It is very risky to hope that your cold snap isn't followed by real frost - it's much better to mulch thickly with whatever is to hand (I temporarily transfer the top half of the compost heap to the oca) - then if you expose them in a week or two you will see the surface stems producing usable tubers until they shrivel from exhaustion.
NB. I've planted pea sized oca tubers and been pleasantly surprised that the small plants produce normal size tubers in small quantities.
Contrast that with bloody shallots where if you plant a small bulb you just get 5-10 even smaller bulbs - largely irrespective of how much you mollycoddle them.
Cheers.
Quote from: Vinlander on December 07, 2012, 17:50:42
I'm not convinced AJ was looking at real frost - the 'bush' can collapse when the leaves fall off because of cold - but when actual frost makes the stems go translucent they are dead, dead, dead - and the starch rots where it lies.
I wasn't looking at frost. I was looking at frosted oca foliage and the tubers bulked up during the next few weeks. Whether it was real frost or not, who knows - I suspect it was real frost as the ground was also frosty and so was the car. Fake frost would probably not have had the same effect.
HTH.
I hadn't thought of burying the oca; I'll try it. I gather I'm not the only one who suffers from shrinking shallotts (how's that for alliteration?); anyone got a solution?
I've lifted mine. The top growth has been dead for a couple of weeks and we had a day in the week when the ground thawed so out it came. Amazingly good yields this year considering the plants were barely a quarter of the size they grew to last year. In fact, I think the harvest is as good as last years. Slight slug damage on the white variety though. Perhaps that shouldn't be left in the ground too long?
Quote from: aj on December 07, 2012, 18:33:28
Quote from: Vinlander on December 07, 2012, 17:50:42
I'm not convinced AJ was looking at real frost - the 'bush' can collapse when the leaves fall off because of cold - but when actual frost makes the stems go translucent they are dead, dead, dead - and the starch rots where it lies.
I wasn't looking at frost. I was looking at frosted oca foliage and the tubers bulked up during the next few weeks. Whether it was real frost or not, who knows - I suspect it was real frost as the ground was also frosty and so was the car. Fake frost would probably not have had the same effect.
HTH.
Sorry AJ - I wans't trying to imply you were lying - but I do distinguish between a light ground frost that kills off courgette plants but only causes leaf drop on oca and not much else - and a proper frost that kills tomatoes etc. and makes oca stems translucent.
I suppose the real point is that you are lucky to get a light ground frost that is followed by a mild period to allow the stems to make tubers - it's just as likely to arrive the next night and kill the tops right off.
Heavy rough mulches are advisable as soon as frosts start, and certainly if you see leaf drop.
Cheers.
PS. my solution to shrinking shallots is to grow from seed - they don't even need mollycoddling to produce 3cm bulbs (though it helps if you want bigger ones). The alternative is to start from really big shallots and use LOADs of compost (on my heavy clay).
I have never grown this crop before (I am in Manchester) and I covered mine with plastic a month ago to protect from early frosts and have just dug up half of the plants (which had now been flattened by frosts) and had a smashing yield. Going to get the rest up in the next week and store in the garage to keep and eat. Have been told they should be kept in fridge but garage is like a fridge anyway... lol!
Quite pleased as they taste nutty when raw and I have cooked them too. Even though it has been a long growing season, I am definitely going to keep some to grow next year, it's nice cropping some oca as well as the other early winter produce, parsnips, leeks, beets.
Emptied my oca pots today. Tubers okay a bit disappointed with yield but at least they are edible this year. The best ones were the one growing "wild" from miniscule tubers in the soil I emptied onto my beds this spring. As Winecap says, slug damage mainly to the white ones. Will reconsider my growing methods next year.
Lifted the main oca today. Very pleased with the yield - about 14lb from eight plants. Very clean tubers with many good sized ones although it has to be said they were of various sizes.
Tried some of the larger ones coated in seasoned corn meal and baked in the (halogen) oven for 15 minutes. They were really good, very much like a potato in texture with a very agreeable flavour.
Will use the small ones for soups/stews etc.
All in all a very worthwhile crop that is harvested fresh at a particularly useful time of the year. :happy7:
Have lifted my oca today and everything looks good, however it as been suggested I leave them in the sun for a couple of weeks to sweeten them up not much sun about these days is there another way to sweeten them ?
If your ground is likely to be frozen for a while I'd lift them while you can.
Luckily we harvested some at the beginning of December, before the ground froze solid for 8 days - 'cos after it thawed the remaining tubers had turned to mush.
I lost most of my tubers to mice (fortunately the ones at home were OK).
I dug up the plants and buried them in a trench about 150mm deep - I smoothed the surface by treading it so I would be able to see easily if the mice found them.
I just took a look and the Good news is that the stems are still there and definitely producing more tubers, the bad news is that at present the tubers are all about the size of a large pea, so I re-buried them for a few more weeks.
If the stems have all rotted the next time I take a look I will just harvest the tubers and use them as 'seed' at half spacing.
Last time I did this the plants were small with half as many tubers but the tubers were normal size, so with twice as many plants the row was nearly as productive as normal too.
Cheers