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Ullucus tuberosus
Ulluco is a tuber-forming Andean root crop, the only species in its genus, grown mainly for its starchy, potato-like tubers and secondarily for its spinach-like leaves. It needs a long, cool-to-mild growing season and is usually started from tubers.
Ullucus is a genus of flowering plants in the family Basellaceae, with one species, Ullucus tuberosus, a plant grown primarily as a root vegetable and secondarily as a leaf vegetable. The name ulluco is derived from the Quechua word ulluku, but depending on the region, it has many different names. These include illaco (in Aymara), melloco (in Ecuador), chungua or ruba (in Colombia), olluco or papa lisa (in Bolivia and Peru), or ulluma (in Argentina).
Ulluco is one of the most widely grown and economically important root crops in the Andean region of South America, second only to the potato. The tuber is the primary edible part, but the leaf is also used and is similar to spinach. They are known to contain high levels of protein, calcium, and carotene. Ulluco was used by the Incas during the pre-Columbian era.
Fresh tubers of ulluco are a valuable source of carbohydrates, comparable to one of the most world spread root crop, the potato. It contains also high fiber levels, moderate protein and only little fat (< 2%). Regarding the vitamin content, ulluco tubers contain a significant value of vitamin C (11.5 mg/100 g), higher than the commonly eaten vegetables such as carrots (6 mg/100 g) and celery but lower than yams (17.1 mg/100 g) or potato (19.7 mg/100 g).
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Ullucus by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
