OCA

mjg000 · « **on:** May 02, 2015, 14:14 »

Can anyone tell me when the Oca I planted at the end of March are likely to appear & what they might look like? Or is it too long, and they have been stolen, eaten or rotted?

RJR_38 · « **Reply #1 on:** May 02, 2015, 15:51 »

Ooh I would like to know this too! I planted mine at the same time as my spuds and while they have popped up their heads there is no sight of the oca...

sunshineband · « **Reply #2 on:** May 02, 2015, 16:13 »

Gently dig down with you fingers and see if there are shoots growing now -- there should be.

Mine are just coming through as tight clusters of leaves, having been planted out in the third week of March. A couple that "escaped" last Autumn got dug up earlier this week and their white shoots hadn't made it to the light yet, so my guess is all should be well

Baldy · « **Reply #3 on:** May 02, 2015, 16:18 »

Look like this:

They started to show for me about a week and a half ago - had been in an unheated GH.

Pip pip,
Balders

RJR_38 · « **Reply #4 on:** May 02, 2015, 16:27 »

Are they prone to slugs? Should I put some pellets down?

sunshineband · « **Reply #5 on:** May 02, 2015, 16:31 »

Quote from: RJR_38 on May 02, 2015, 16:27

Are they prone to slugs? Should I put some pellets down?

They do get the odd slug hole in them -- I usually work a few into the soil surface, as the leaves themselves seem immune

RJR_38 · « **Reply #6 on:** May 02, 2015, 17:24 »

Ok, I just wondered if they were getting nibbled off as they were emerging

Mrs Bee · « **Reply #7 on:** May 02, 2015, 17:49 »

It is the first time for growing them here. I followed the advice on the net and planted them in pots of compost first and they are showing their leaves now.

And they are going in this weekend.

Don't know if I am doing right or not.

mjg000 · « **Reply #8 on:** May 02, 2015, 19:04 »

I wish I'd started them off in pots, I'll just have to wait and see if I can distinguish Baldy's excellent photo of the Oca from the weeds that are coming up too!

Steveharford · « **Reply #9 on:** May 02, 2015, 19:06 »

Hi Di Hi. I will be starting mine in pots too. That is, the ones I harvested last year as there just wasnt wnough to get a meal out of. I planted straight into the ground last year and the tops were prolific enough but the harvest was dire. Trying a different approach this year as they look so nice but have yet to taste one.

surbie100 · « **Reply #10 on:** May 02, 2015, 19:26 »

There's lots of good advice on Ian Pearson's site: http://oca-testbed.blogspot.co.uk/

What is interesting is that there doesn't seem to be much difference between early and late planting. I put some out in March and some in July last year and had a similar crop per tuber from each in January. They seem to me to be fairly hungry plants - I was told to treat them like spuds. I fed mine a lot and got a great crop, my neighbour didn't and got a lousy crop.

I have mine in pots for now and will plant out some time in June/July when the space is ready. The leaves are nice to add to salad, they taste like sorrel.

PS They grow really reeeeeeeeeallly big!

Mrs Bee · « **Reply #11 on:** May 02, 2015, 20:30 »

Quote from: Steveharford on May 02, 2015, 19:06

Hi Di Hi. I will be starting mine in pots too. That is, the ones I harvested last year as there just wasnt wnough to get a meal out of. I planted straight into the ground last year and the tops were prolific enough but the harvest was dire. Trying a different approach this year as they look so nice but have yet to taste one.

Hi Steve.

These are what my oca look like at the moment.

Surbie, do you think I should plant them now or wait until later in the season.

surbie100 · « **Reply #12 on:** May 02, 2015, 20:41 »

Totally up to you. I think they will be fine in pots for a few weeks yet if the space isn't ready for them, but they will also be v happy in the ground. It's more the top growth that gets unwieldy and is a bit fragile. I was really awful to mine last year and they sat on the balcony for ages. I gave them the same spacing as maincrop spuds.

Mrs Bee · « **Reply #13 on:** May 02, 2015, 21:33 »

Quote from: surbie100 on May 02, 2015, 20:41

Totally up to you. I think they will be fine in pots for a few weeks yet if the space isn't ready for them, but they will also be v happy in the ground. It's more the top growth that gets unwieldy and is a bit fragile. I was really awful to mine last year and they sat on the balcony for ages. I gave them the same spacing as maincrop spuds.

Thanks Surbie, might leave it a bit longer then. Mr Bee is still digging over the new plot and it is wall to wall devils guts.

At least with this extra plot he doesn't need the mattock.

RJR_38 · « **Reply #14 on:** May 04, 2015, 20:36 »

I had a hunt for mine today... They were only a cm or two below the surface yippee! In hindsight I think I might have buried them a bit too deep but they were looking fairly healthy so this week should be their week

OCA

mjg000

OCA

RJR_38

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sunshineband

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Baldy

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RJR_38

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sunshineband

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RJR_38

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Mrs Bee

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mjg000

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Steveharford

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surbie100

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Mrs Bee

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surbie100

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Mrs Bee

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RJR_38

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