Yacon, Smallanthus sonchifolius, high yielding edible tubers for self sufficiency

Note: it’s still early spring and the plants just came back to life. There is still not much growth, but they will grow fast!

Yacon is as easy to grow as the so-called Jerusalem artichoke, but it tastes much better. The yields are ridiculously high, and unlike the Jerusalem artichoke, the tubers are smooth and easy to clean. The knobby part inside is for replanting,g and the longish tubers that grow around that are eaten.
Once the plant flowers dies off it is time to harvest, as its sweetness is at its maximum. Yacon is a perennial plant. If you don’t dig it up, it will resprout.
If peeled, yacon can be eaten raw, it’s nice in any vegetable stew or with the Sunday roast, lots of possibilities for the inventive cook!. Yacon can be made into a sweet syrup that doesn’t wreck your teeth.
Yacon is seen as a super food and a weight loss aid.  The starches you find in Yacon are not the usual ones eaten in potatoes or bread; they are similar to those found in Jerusalem artichokes.
The leaf tea is used to fight diabetes.