A Detailed Guide to High-Efficiency Cultivation Techniques for Yacon

Yacon is rich in water and fructooligosaccharides, has a crisp, sweet taste, and is also highly nutritious. Yacon likes to grow in a warm environment, but it is not tolerant of low temperatures, and it can generally be harvested in about half a year. Below is “Tianshan snow lotus” a detailed guide to high-efficiency cultivation techniques for yacon!

1. Seedling selection

Yacon is a foreign variety. Since it was introduced to the inland areas for cultivation, it has become very popular with consumers. However, there are also many channels for introducing yacon, so when selecting seeds, you must choose good seedlings. We can judge from the appearance: the sprouts are required to be plump and free of defects; for seedlings, the leaves should be emerald green, robust, and not wilted; and whether seeds or seedlings, there must be no signs of insect bites.

2. Planting time

As for the sowing time of yacon, earlier is better than later. For sowing, the method of raising seedlings in nutrient pots and then transplanting is adopted. For direct sowing, it is done in early April. If small arch sheds are used for raising seedlings, it can be advanced to the end of March; if the nutrient pot method is used for seedling propagation, the sowing time can be advanced to early March, after which they are transplanted into the field and watered promptly. The earlier the planting time, the higher the yield. From practical experience, yacon planted in May-June generally shows a clear decline in yield.

3. Apply sufficient base fertilizer

Before transplanting, in the field, we should preferably use fully decomposed human and livestock manure, and also add a certain amount of high-quality phosphate fertilizer, potassium fertilizer, and so on. If conditions permit, some trace elements can be added to improve product quality. Before fertilizing, we must also deep-plow the soil to increase soil aeration and also kill harmful pests and diseases.

4. Drainage and waterlogging prevention

During the growth period and mid-growth period of yacon, watering should be done promptly according to soil moisture. Especially in June-July, when the weather is relatively hot and temperatures are also high, more watering is needed, but soil moisture should be kept above 80%. It must not be too waterlogged, otherwise soil aeration will be very poor and oxygen content will also be low, leading to root rot in yacon. In areas with excessive rain and low-lying places, drainage should be carried out promptly to prevent yacon from cracking in the later growth stage.

5. Pruning

Too many branches will affect the underground growth of yacon, so we only need to keep 2-3 main branches and remove all the others. When the plant grows to 50 cm tall and branches appear, we should prune them promptly.

The above is Tuliwang's introduction to the key cultivation techniques for yacon. Yacon has the fine names of “underground fruit” and “Tianshan snow lotus”, and its market demand is still relatively large. I hope this article can be helpful to friends who grow yacon.