Perennial root crops - some plants to try

Eino Kenttä wrote:Found this article (https://www.researchgate.net/publication/303743938_Wild_food_plants_and_fungi_used_in_the_mycophilous_Tibetan_community_of_Zhagana_Tewo_County_Gansu_China) where there is a picture of a Tibetan dish made from silverweed. The tubers look rather small, but still, if one found a good patch on soil that was easy to dig, it might make a good addition to the diet. Sadly, around here I've mostly seen it on quite compacted soil by roadsides and such, and on rocky seashores. Not very digging-friendly.

Great link, thanks! Very interesting for me. The photo on p10, labelled "Potentilla anserina tubers," does not look like the ones I've seen, which are paler and long and skinny. I googled "potentilla anserina tubers images" and found several that looked like what I've seen though I've seen them bigger than the first few images that come up.

Thanks Rebecca! It's nice to know that silverweed isn't one of those "Oh, I read in this blog quoting this disreputable publication referring to obscure ethnobotanical research indicating that some people somewhere might possibly have used this for famine food a long time ago, so we should all plant an acre each!" but rather actually useful. I first read about it in a British wild food book (don't remember the name) that largely wrote it off as a waste of time harvesting it for food. I wonder if the author had the same first experience of it that I did, digging and not finding any tubers, just thin roots. A quick search online yields some info about it having been cultivated in the Scottish highlands at some point, so it wouldn't be strange if the Tibetans do the same. Otherwise: Is the Tibetan variety of the same subspecies as the Ladakh one? There seems to be considerable genetic difference in the species, or species complex (https://www.jstor.org/stable/23724290?seq=1) with some populations even being tetra- or hexaploid. Tetraploidy sometimes makes for more viable crop plants, right? Might be worth trying to get some of those Tibetan ones...

The Tibetan and Ladakhi ones could certainly be separate sub-species or varieties. The climate described in the article above is obviously very different from (much moister than) the climate here in Ladakh.

I posted here in the summer that I was growing mashua this year. So here is an update on the harvest, which was pretty good. Quite a few fist sized tubers. Sadly, though himself and I tried several different ways of cooking, we decided in the end we really didn’t like the taste! So not recommended as a root crop, but it’s a handsome plant, the bees love it and the new leaves and flowers add variety to a salad. I am going to find a sunny spot where it can be at home and look after itself, and I will enjoy the above ground plant. Win some, lose some!

By contrast I also tried some oca, which was really quite pleasant. The downside is that every little creature in the soil seemed to like it as well, so very little worth harvesting. Jury is out on whether to try again.

Silverweed is the "seventh bread of the Gaels", however the roots are pretty thin and brittle.  I thought they were very tasty though!  They have a sustantial taste/texture like daal when cooked. Although they are thin, they are smooth, so quite easy to wash.  They spready pretty easily by runners, but I haven't managed to collect seed.  I thought that might be because they are self infertile, so have collected plants from a few different areas of Skye.  The main difference in the root size however seems to be in where they are growing.
My soil is light, but almost always wet, so I've gone off root crops a bit.  They are usually harvested in winter and digging in wet soil is not my favourite task, especially given the limited hours of daylight at this time of year.  The exception is crops grown in the polytunnel (indoor gardening is more fun in a wet climate!)  I grow Yacon, Mashua, Apios americana, Dioscorea Japonica in the tunnel.  They all ought to grow outside, but our summers really aren't hot enough.  I'm thinking that the Apios and Dioscorea need more than one year to reach a reasonable crop, so am developing a rotation whereby the 'permanent' root crops will be dug up at the same time as the replant perennials: Yacon and Mashua.
Skirret seems to do pretty well here, is tasty, but is difficult to wash the dirt off.  I'm growing a few other root crops outside (and inside) but haven't had a chance to try them yet. These include:
Fritillaria camschatcensis (finally got seed this year)
Camassia sp. Growing well outside, pretty flowers!
Canna edulis: my one seedling disapoeared over winter last year
Dahlia: growing well, various varieties, not tried yet, I gather the palatability can be borderline
Erythronium revolutum: grows well here, pretty spring flowers
Cyperus esculentus sativa: even in the polytunnel didn't seem to grow well.
Sagitaria latifolia, tasty: only grown in polytunnel so far, but should be OK outside.
Colocasia: surviving in polytunnel pond but I'm not sure what variety it is.
Various Campanula sp.: growing rather better than I expected given my slug population.  Pretty flowers!

Be sure to try growing Spring Beauty (aka Virginia Fairy Potatoes) if you can! It may not be a crop in its own right but it could be a good chunk of a suplemental harvest. Plus, the bees love it.

Hi Cade - ooh great suggestion! I'd love to grow spring beauty. Not easy to get hold of in the UK I think though - I did get seed once, but they didn't germinate...keep trying!

Yea. I'd say if you like to eat it and feel you could survive off it then don't hurt to grow more. If you not sure grow em in pots and see how much they spread.

I personally done similar with common tubers.

I put in sweet potatoes, potatoes, and elephant garlic. And onions. I use onions next to baby plants to protect them really, so if I get onions even better lol. I'm thankful. And maybe focus on using trees as like the center of a guild to build your roots around. Fruits are good. Wood etc whatever you need.

I prob won't harvest most of them this year. Sweet potato is easy to grow spreads like crazy, and they seem to love those little nooks between the tree lines where the water rains down and you get bit of runoff. You plant em at that area the sweet potatoes will soar.

I get bunch of old pallets I'll convert them into boxes and plant potatoes. Layer them with soil and straw.

Only harvest what you need. Leave the rest in the ground for next year. Focus on what you like to eat and or what you be able to barter someone for with.

Scorzonera is great! First off, it is a perennial root crop. You can leave it in the ground for years and still eat it.  It is beloved by some people in Germany and The Netherlands,  and probably further afield too.   But there are a few things you need to know for good results.    When you harvest it, you can take the top  chop off most of the leaves and leave an inch or 2 of root on it, replant it and it will regrow!  You can even divide the top, and most likely the 2 or 3 pieces you  have will regrow.  Or you can grow from seeds but that takes longer. Another,  the roots grow extremely long.  I am on clay soil, so this is an issue.  I think if you are on clay,  it probably needs to be grown in very high raised beds, where you can break out one side of the raised bed, and remove the soil to harvest the damn root! I'm talking about 1.5 or 2 ft high raised beds, just for the scorzonera!  So, that is a lot of work, I think.  But it is totally worth it.  Cooking scorzonera.  Scorzonera has a dirty crackled black skin on it, like the root of a tree,  and your initial thoughts might be to peal it like a carrot.  That is wrong!  It has a gooey white rubber that is like glue just under the skin. (It IS rubber, by the way,  and some species of scorzonera are or were used for rubber production in the past).   It makes your fingers turn yellow and stick to each other!  Its really hard to get the yellow off!  The secret is to parboil it for a couple of minutes. This coagulates the white goo.  Next stage is to use something like a cheese grater or a file or mild rasp to rub off the black skin. The rest of the skin layer is edible.  Chop it to 2 or 3 inch lengths and boil it till tender.    Salsify is called the "vegetable oyster" and scorzonera is sometimes called "black salsify" because it tastes similar.   But many people think scorzonera is nicer.   Salsify is biennial.  You eat it in the first year, like carrots, and it goes to seed in the second year.  I found that when you grow salsify you need to baby it, water it well, etc. But at least, the roots are more of a standard length.   It's so long since I grew it, that I don't remember if it has the white rubber in it or not.    Scorzonera on the other hand is very hardy.  It is drought tolerant. So it is probably a much better fit for most people.    

Brian White wrote:   When you harvest it, you can take the top  chop off most of the leaves and leave an inch or 2 of root on it, replant it and it will regrow!  You can even divide the top, and most likely the 2 or 3 pieces you  have will regrow.  

Ooh, that's good to know Brian! I've mainly been using the leaves, but I have got some scorzonera of various ages, so I may dig some up and experiment a bit with the roots.

Silly question perhaps - Do you divide the top like a pie to regrow it? Or will each length of root regrow like a dandelion?

Spring beauty sounds very appealing as a food source during spring when not much else is ready. Any preparation tips?

I tried a bunch of new perennial root crops this year with mixed results. The mashua really struggled to outcompete the weeds and then the stuff I protected with a lot of mulch died during the first of the intense summer heat. Might try another variety because I love the idea of it, but I was very disappointed in this year's results.

Edible dioscorea bulbifera was another one. Did really well but my dad (who lives with me and does a lot in the garden) mistook it for a weed and destroyed most of it. Happy to report it bounced back and is now producing again.

Sacred lotus is going crazy in the protected area of my pond (everything outside that area gets destroyed by turtles and ducks) - very optimistic for that one going forward.

Going to try to harvest some cattails from a nearby ditch later this fall to establish in the pond as well.

In the meantime, can't speak highly enough of Jerusalem artichoke and Chinese yam. Year after year they outcompete everything and give bountiful yields with virtually no input. Love that both are dual use. My goats go crazy for the j. artichoke tops and the yam bulbils are great for chickens.

I think chinese yams are one of the most underappreciated crops out there. Literal food falling from the sky plus buried treasure under ground.

I got sun chokes that I have been spreading on my property intentionally, the deer love them which at first I was annoyed until I realized “oh yeah, venison.” Burdock grows around the yard but I never tried to dig it up. I got the cultivated version of Solomon’s seal and I tried introducing cat tails in my vernal pool but they didn’t take.

Nancy Reading wrote:

Brian White wrote:   When you harvest it, you can take the top  chop off most of the leaves and leave an inch or 2 of root on it, replant it and it will regrow!  You can even divide the top, and most likely the 2 or 3 pieces you  have will regrow.  

Ooh, that's good to know Brian! I've mainly been using the leaves, but I have got some scorzonera of various ages, so I may dig some up and experiment a bit with the roots.

Silly question perhaps - Do you divide the top like a pie to regrow it? Or will each length of root regrow like a dandelion?

 Hi,  Nancy,  Just the top couple of inches.  I only divide it "like a pie" if it has several growing buds.   If it has one, I just leave it as is.  As far as I know, the root lower down  doesn't regrow,  just the top where the leaves come out.  I have tried eating the leaves in the past but I didn't like the taste.  

Sam Shade wrote: the yam bulbils are great for chickens.

I think chinese yams are one of the most underappreciated crops out there. Literal food falling from the sky plus buried treasure under ground.

What a great idea - as vines they could be planted outside a chicken run to be safe from the chooks pecking at the greenery, but drop the bulbils into the run for them to eat!

Brian White wrote: Hi,  Nancy,  Just the top couple of inches.  I only divide it "like a pie" if it has several growing buds.   If it has one, I just leave it as is.  As far as I know, the root lower down  doesn't regrow,  just the top where the leaves come out.  I have tried eating the leaves in the past but I didn't like the taste.

Thanks for the clarification - I'll bear that in mind.
The leaf taste may be a difference in our growing conditions as much as our taste buds perhaps.