🥦 Mashua

Tropaeolum tuberosum

vegetables perennial climbing vine (grown as annual for tubers)

☀️ Sun

full sun to partial shade

💧 Water

moderate

🗺️ Zones

7, 10

🧪 Soil pH

5.5-7.0

🪴 Soil Type

well-draining, tolerates poor soils

🚿 Drainage

Well-drained

📏 Spacing

12-18 in. apart, 30-36 in. between rows (vine; trellis or ground)

⏱️ Maturity

180-220 days (from planting tubers); harvest after first frost for reduced pungency

🍴 Edible Parts

🍽️ Boiled or roasted tubers, traditional Andean dishes, edible flowers and leaves in salads

Key:🤝 Grows well together❌ Keep apart☀️ Sun needs💧 Water🗺️ Hardiness zone

🤝 Companions (8)

🤝 Bean

Traditional Andean companion; beans fix nitrogen

🤝 Corn

Corn provides support for mashua vines

🤝 Oca

Mashua and oca are traditional Andean companions , mashua's natural pest-repellent compounds protect oca from nematodes and insects while both tuber at similar depths.

🤝 Potato

Andean root crop companions

🤝 Ulluco

Mashua deters pests from ulluco with its natural insecticidal compounds; both are traditional Andean polyculture partners with complementary harvest times.

🤝 broad beans

Broad beans fix nitrogen that mashua's tuber development needs; mashua deters bean pests in return , a mutually beneficial intercropping pair.

🤝 corn (as support)

Corn provides trellising support for mashua's climbing vines; mashua repels corn pests with its pungent compounds , a beneficial New World pairing.

⚠️ Keep Apart (1)

⚠️ plants easily smothered by vigorous vines

Growth inhibition or competition

📝 Growing Notes

Vigorous nasturtium relative. Tubers have peppery flavor. Traditional Andean polyculture member. Natural pest repellent, contains compounds deterring nematodes and insects. Used as living trellis interplanting with corn.

🛒 Buy Seeds & Plants

Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds Johnny's Selected Seeds Botanical Interests True Leaf Market Burpee Territorial Seed Company

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