Jicama, Mexican Yam, Mexican Potato, Yambean, Mexican Turnip

I fell in love with jicama in Mexico. My local fruit stand sells them. They are kept in the frig. They do mold quickly. I had one sprout ...Read Morelast Summer and planted it under a spreading Cassia tree, it went wild. Eventually having violet flowers, which in turn sprouted bean pods about 5" long and have 10 M&M sized seeds. I waited until they dried and pulled the plant. The root ball had grown some. The pods are tough, so I put them in a box to dry. They curl and the seeds drop out. I planted a few last fall. I pulled one at 18" and the fruit was the size of a golf ball, and tender/yummy. I'm wondering when will they be big...I have hundreds of seeds saved. I live in Mims, Fl. zone 9b.

I'm in 9b Florida and love eating raw jicama, so am interested in trying to grow it. My friend living slightly to the south of me started...Read More growing it recently, and gave me some seeds. I've seen her vines up to 15' -- the one on her 6' fence is not exactly attractive (sparse leaves, pale purple flowers are browning) and she has another one growing amidst and among shrubs and short fruit trees in her permaculture yard (I like this idea better).

Questions: I'd like to know when to harvest the tubers for eating?? And is anyone having luck growing the other jicama, the wild one related to morning glory, ipomoea bracteata?? It looks prettier to me on its Dave's Garden page, but zone 9b may be iffy...

Next year I hope to report on my own experience!

When I lived in E TN I grew jicama one year. My soil was poor, and, since I had the understanding that jicama was a legume closely rela...Read Moreted to kudzu (a terrible pest where I was), I didn't use anything but compost for it. I grew it from seed, which is the only way I am aware of. The comments already given (grows very fast, somewhat fuzzy green leaves, bloom color and time) coincide with my experience. The looks of the tuber, and the taste do too. I am now in northwest Indiana, and one of the big markets frequently has jicama, which I enjoy eating!

This is the commercial type of Jicama grown for market. The true Mexican Jicama belongs to the Morning Glory family. I use this as a scre...Read Moreen plant on a fence. It is a rapid grower and in two months has covered thirty feet in one direction. It has covered the entire fence top to bottom.