Andean cool-climate root crop with heart-shaped leaves and clusters of small yellow flowers, producing small smooth waxy tubers in pink, yellow, red, or purple. One of the three Andean root crops (alongside oca and mashua).
Hardiness ratings
| System | Rating | Temperature range | How to read it |
|---|---|---|---|
| USDA hardiness zone | Zone 7–10 | −17.8 °C to 4.4 °C | Plant tolerates down to this zone |
| RHS hardiness rating | H4 | −10 °C to −5 °C | Plant needs at least this level of cold tolerance |
| Canadian plant hardiness zone | Zone 8–9 | −7 °C and warmer | Plant tolerates down to this zone |
| Australian (ANBG) zone | Zone 2–5 | −10 °C to 10 °C | Plant tolerates down to this zone |
Growing notes
- Native to the high Andes of Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador — important pre-Columbian crop, still widely grown above 3,000 m
- Edible tubers and leaves — tubers eaten boiled with their colourful skin, mucilaginous texture similar to okra
- Day-length sensitive like oca and mashua — tubers form only under shortening days, narrow growing window outside the Andes
- Free of the cyanogenic compounds that affect some Andean tubers — safe to eat raw if very young
Categories
Related plants
Cross-check Ulluco against your zones