Grow Your Own Magazine

Fancy trying these:- Bit of a lengthy write-up but sounds interesting!


On offer are 10 Maca (Lepidium meyenii) seeds.

Synonyms: Lepidium peruvianum, Lepidium weddellii, Lepidium affine, Lepidium gelidum, Maca, Peruvian Ginseng, maka, mace, maca-maca, maino, ayak chichira, ayuk willku, pepperweed.

Maca is a hardy perennial plant cultivated high in the Andean Mountain at altitudes from 11,000-14,500 feet. The area where Maca is found high in the Andes is an inhospitable region of intense sunlight, violent winds and below freezing weather. With its extreme temperatures and poor rocky soil, the area rates among the world's worst farmland, yet over the centuries, Maca learned to flourish under these conditions. Maca was domesticated about 2000 years ago by the Inca Indians and primitive cultivars of Maca have been found in archaeological sites dating as far back as 1600 B.C.

Maca has a low-growing, mat-like stem system which at times goes almost unnoticed. Its scalloped leaves lie close to the ground and it produces self-fertile small off-white flowers. The part used is the tuberous root which is pear shaped, up to 8 cm/3 inches in diameter and ranging from off-white to golden in colour usually, with the occasional purple one.

Although it is a perennial, it is grown as an annual, and 7-9 months from planting are required to produce the harvested roots..

To the Andean Indians, Maca is a valuable commodity. Because so little else grows in the region, Maca is often traded with communities at lower elevations for other staples like rice, corn, and beans.

Native Peruvians have traditionally utilized Maca since before the time of the Incas for both nutritional and medicinal purposes.

Maca is an important staple in the diets of the people indigenous to the region since it has the highest nutritional value of any food crop grown there. It has 59% carbohydrates, 10.2% protein, 8.5% fibre and 2.2% lipids. It has a large amount of essential amino acids and higher levels of iron and calcium than potatoes. Maca contains important amounts of fatty acids including linolenic, palmitic and oleic acids. It is rich in sterols and has a high mineral content as well. In addition to its rich supply of essential nutrients, Maca contains alkaloids, tannins and saponins. A chemical analysis conducted in 1981 showed the presence of biologically active aromatic isothiocyanates, especially p-methoxybenzyl isothiocyanate, which have reputed aphrodisiac properties.



Nutritional Profile of Dried Maca Root
(Average 10 gram serving)
Component per 10 g Amino Acids per 10 g Minerals per 10 g
Protein 1–1.4 g Alanine 63.1 mg Calcium 25 mg
Carbohydrates 6–7.5 g Arginine 99.4 mg Copper 0.6 mg
Fats (lipids) 220 mg Aspartic acid 91.7 mg Iron 1.5 mg
Fiber 850 mg Glutamic acid 156.5 mg Iodine 52 mcg
Ash 490 mg Glycine 68.3 mg Manganese 80 mcg
Sterols 5–10 mg Histidine 41.9 mg Potassium 205 mg
Calories 32.5 HO-Proline 26.0 mg Sodium 1.9 mg
Isoleucine 47.4 mg Zinc 380 mcg
Leucine 91.0 mg
Vitamins per 10 g Lysine 54.5 mg Fats/Lipids per 10 g
B2 39 mcg Methionine 28.0 mg Linoleic 72 mcg
B6 114 mcg Phenylalanine 55.3 mg Palmitic 52 mcg
C 28.6 mg Proline 0.5 mg Oleic 24.5 mcg
Niacin 565 mcg Sarcosine 0.7 mg
Serine 50.4 mg
Threonine 33.1 mg
Tryptophan 4.9 mg
Tyrosine 30.6 mg
Valine 79.3 mg



The tuber is consumed fresh or dried. The fresh roots are considered a treat and are baked or roasted in ashes much like sweet potatoes. The dried roots are stored and later boiled in water or milk to make a porridge. (the dried roots can be stored for up to seven years.) In addition, they are often made into a popular sweet, fragrant, fermented drink called maca chicha. In Huancayo, Peru, even Maca jam and pudding are popular.

The tuberous roots have a tangy taste and an aroma similar to butterscotch.

Maca has been used medicinally for centuries in South America to enhance fertility in humans and animals. Soon after the Spanish Conquest the Spanish found that their livestock were reproducing poorly in the highlands. The local Indians recommended feeding the animals Maca and so remarkable were the results that Spanish chroniclers gave in-depth reports. Even Colonial records of some 200 years ago indicate that payments of roughly 9 tons of Maca were demanded from one Andean area alone for this purpose. Its fertility enhancing properties were supported clinically as early as 1961, when researchers discovered it increased the fertility of rats.

Maca is growing in world popularity due to its energizing effects, fertility enhancement and aphrodisiac qualities.

Other traditional uses include increasing energy, stamina and endurance in athletes, promoting mental clarity, treating male impotence, and helping with menstrual irregularities and female hormonal imbalances including menopause and chronic fatigue syndrome.

Today, dried Maca roots are ground to powder and sold in Health Food shops to increase stamina and fertility.

In Peruvian herbal medicine, Maca is also used as an immunostimulant, for anemia, tuberculosis, menstrual disorders, menopause symptoms, stomach cancer, sterility and other reproductive and sexual disorders as well as to enhance memory.

Maca doesn't grow well in hot weather. In warmer areas maca can be grown during the winter months.

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Let us know how you get on with it Snadger. Sounds interesting - if it is good would like to try it next year, dont have the ground ready to try it now. Don't forget to post results - are but after eating your maca you wouln't forget anything again.

__________________
Denise xox

Learn from the mistakes of others because you'll never live long enough to make them all yourself.
-- Alfred E. Neumann
http://irchesterplot.blogspot.com

OH might get a fright as wel!!!

Managed to get 40 seeds from another source and have been on google to no avail trying to get some information on growing in the UK?

Anyone grew it before or can give me any hints on how to grow it?

Might even have to have a word with Nobby Solano if all else fails! Lol

If we find ourselves surrounded by little Snadgers we'll know you've been successful

Funnily enough thats what maca looks like..little snadgers!

I have heard it won't grow near to Heather

__________________
ntg

Never be afraid to try something new.
Remember that a lone amateur built the Ark.
A large group of professionals built the Titanic

Lol!
Have to say the designated growing conditions sound perfect for my wind tunnel cliff garden which gets baked in the Summer and no sun and freezing sea winds in winter.
Seriously though I'd reckon the altitude could be a governing factor for this plant. I'm vague on it but I remember a horticulture expert friend who worked at Kew or somesuch once holding forth on the reasons why certain plants from high altitudes cannot sustain here. Can't remember any details though. Interesting. It's the same story with Ginseng from Asia. The plant doesn't maintain the desired properties when grown here apparantly.

Snadger - have a look at this - just goes to show how things are lost when we translate into English

http://www.maca.co.uk/maca_books.php

Snadger knew it was an aphrodisiac when he bought it. Probably the reason why he is growing it!!

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[

Yep!....been on this site,,,,still doesn't tell you how to grow it though!

I've got the seeds now, so if I can't find out how to grow the damm thing I think I'll just scoff the seeds!

I'll keep you posted if anything comes up!

I've got the following from a Peruvian website. Maca grows at an altitude of 3800-4800m where it's boiling hot during the day and temperatures at night drop below freezing. It's a brassica and looks like a turnip, the foliage is sort of carrotty/turnipy and the root itself is between 3 and 6cm in diameter, 4-7cm in length. It's sown between September and December and harvested six to eight months later. It's left to dry out in the sun for up to 2 months (we're lucky if we get 2 weeks here!) and during this time it loses 75% of its original weight and the flavour changes from bitter/spicy to sweet. Once it has dried it can be ground up and has a shelf life of up to 4 years. It's even sold in supermarkets in Lima and they've started making liquers and sweets from it. It was an interesting site - said the native Andes people have been growing it since about 1600BC and when the animals taken over by the Spanish conquistadors didn't reproduce at those altitudes, the natives fed them maca and hey presto. It didn't say anything about soil type etc only that they don't use herbicides as nothing else will grow at that altitude! Perhaps it'll only work if you're up a mountain

I think I've been on that site but didnt notice the Sept to Dec sowing dates which is the info I need! Thanks

Do you think if I put the seed tray on top of my hut it will be hiigh enough! Lol

On top of Ben Nevis

Make sure you swallow them quickly other wise you'll end up with a stiff neck

__________________
ntg

Never be afraid to try something new.
Remember that a lone amateur built the Ark.
A large group of professionals built the Titanic

Oh Nick you can't say that!!

__________________
[

yes I can...

Make sure you swallow them quickly other wise you'll end up with a stiff neck

See

__________________
ntg

Never be afraid to try something new.
Remember that a lone amateur built the Ark.
A large group of professionals built the Titanic

Nick! Stop it!

__________________
[

snadger started it miss

__________________
ntg

Never be afraid to try something new.
Remember that a lone amateur built the Ark.
A large group of professionals built the Titanic

Yes, well I will have to bring the pea cane out soon!!

__________________
[

oo errr

__________________
ntg

Never be afraid to try something new.
Remember that a lone amateur built the Ark.
A large group of professionals built the Titanic

Sowed half he seeds in an 8" pot yesterday will sow the rest in spring. Looking forward to actually seeing it grow and eventually having a taste of it.

Could be a bit like the old saying from Crocodile Dundee " You can eat it, but it tastes like s**t" .....Hope not!

__________________
My Majesty made for him a garden anew in order
to present to him vegetables and all beautiful flowers.- Offerings of Thutmose III to Amon-Ra (1500 BCE)

Not perfect, but perfectly acceptable(Snadge)

By the time you've got the hoe from the shed at the end of the garden, you could have hand weeded the area! (Geoff Hamiltom-ish)

Hi Snadger,
Could you tell me where you obtained the seeds from? ( to me they look like turnips )
regards
Don Vincenzo

Vincenzo

They do look like turnips but are supposed to taste of butterscotch!

Here's a link:-

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/40-MACA-SEEDS-...QQcmdZViewItem

Plenty of information on google about them!

__________________
My Majesty made for him a garden anew in order
to present to him vegetables and all beautiful flowers.- Offerings of Thutmose III to Amon-Ra (1500 BCE)

Not perfect, but perfectly acceptable(Snadge)

By the time you've got the hoe from the shed at the end of the garden, you could have hand weeded the area! (Geoff Hamiltom-ish)

Hello Snadger,
finally I managed to get some MACA seeds directly from South America 1000 of them but I didn't count them. They did cost a small fortune but together with 25 red muscat vine plants it was my treat for this year. The seeds are completely different from the brassica family but I will treat and grow them like turnips. This week I will try to grow some in modules and transpant them out ASAP. I wonder how yours are doing and if you had any success with them. Another thing which puzzles me is that the drying process will change the taste from bitter - spicy ( similar to turnips roots and their tops ) to a sweet taste, perhaps it is worth to experiment and compare turnips and maca. From one webside I noticed that a vast array of products are made from maca including a alcoholic drink, this combined with the medicinal properties of the plant will justify our efforts growing it........perhaps in the near future we can supply UK and maybe the rest of EU with (By Appointement of H.M.) British Maca products and to witness an explosion in birth rate....Maca for a girl, Maco for a boy ( suggested names)
Regards
Don Vincenzo

They come from an area which has extremes of temperature so I tried sowing half in a cold greenhouse to no avail as yet. I suppose they may require stratification!

I will try sowing the other half in a heated propagator and see how that works out??

Isn't life fun????

__________________
My Majesty made for him a garden anew in order
to present to him vegetables and all beautiful flowers.- Offerings of Thutmose III to Amon-Ra (1500 BCE)

Not perfect, but perfectly acceptable(Snadge)

By the time you've got the hoe from the shed at the end of the garden, you could have hand weeded the area! (Geoff Hamiltom-ish)

[QUOTE=Snadger;58362]They come from an area which has extremes of temperature so I tried sowing half in a cold greenhouse to no avail as yet. I suppose they may require stratification!

I will try sowing the other half in a heated propagator and see how that works out??

What about sowing them in a heated propagator during the day and then transfer them to a fridge or freezer at dusk? I will let you know soon but I am determinate to succeed!!!
Regards
Don Vincenzo

Hello Snadger
on the 17/03/07 I sowed some maca seeds in a cold propagator. Room temperature 10 to 22 and yes the seeds are germinating quite happily!!
I will take some photos and keep the forum informed. What happened to your
Maca seeds, did they germinate?
regards
Don Vincenzo

Funnily enough I was wondering how you got on with yours! Sowed half of mine in a pot in the autumn.........alas nothing came up!
Sowed the other half about the same time as you but nothing has appeared as yet.
Sounds like a very quick germination for yours and I'm pleased you've managed to get them growing! Look forward to finding out how you get on in the future with them!

__________________
My Majesty made for him a garden anew in order
to present to him vegetables and all beautiful flowers.- Offerings of Thutmose III to Amon-Ra (1500 BCE)

Not perfect, but perfectly acceptable(Snadge)

By the time you've got the hoe from the shed at the end of the garden, you could have hand weeded the area! (Geoff Hamiltom-ish)

Hi Snadger
the first lot of maca seeds didn't germinate ( this lot came from someone in Uk and I think is the same source as yours so I presume that the seeds are too old. The one that germinated come directly from Colombia, yes they came up very quickly and I will find very interesting growing this crop.
My best regards
Don Vincenzo

Have you got a link for ordering some more Don? Cheers

__________________
My Majesty made for him a garden anew in order
to present to him vegetables and all beautiful flowers.- Offerings of Thutmose III to Amon-Ra (1500 BCE)

Not perfect, but perfectly acceptable(Snadge)

By the time you've got the hoe from the shed at the end of the garden, you could have hand weeded the area! (Geoff Hamiltom-ish)

Noticed Don has posted on another thread so I thought I would resurrect this one.

Managed to get a second lot of Maca seeds which germinated quite quickly but only seem to be growing ve-e-e-ry slowly!

How are yours doing Don? Any chance of a piccie?

__________________
My Majesty made for him a garden anew in order
to present to him vegetables and all beautiful flowers.- Offerings of Thutmose III to Amon-Ra (1500 BCE)

Not perfect, but perfectly acceptable(Snadge)

By the time you've got the hoe from the shed at the end of the garden, you could have hand weeded the area! (Geoff Hamiltom-ish)

Hello Snadger
Yes they grow quite slowly but they look quite interesting and by tomorrow I am going to transplant them in small pots before the final situ. I will get some pictures late today.
Regards
Don

Hello Snadger and everyone
please find some piccies of my maca, these are a trial. Hopefull tomorrow I will tranplant them. I will keep the forum informed.
regards
Don

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