Practical
Plants

Apios americana

Ground Nut

a perennial member of the Apios genus in the family Leguminosae.

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Taxonomy and growth

Genus
Apios
Life cycle
perennial
Height
1.2 m
Fertility
Insects
Flower type
hermaphrodite
Pollinators
Insects

Uses

Edible uses

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Tuber - raw or cooked[1][7][14][18][19][20]. A delicious flavour somewhat like roasted sweet potatoes, it always receives very high marks in taste trials with us[K]. The tuber can also be dried and ground into a powder then used as a thickening in soups etc or can be added to cereal flours when making bread[2][12]. Tubers contain 17% crude protein, this is more than 3 times that found in potatoes[6]. The tubers can be harvested in their first year but they take 2 - 3 years to become a sizeable crop[4]. They can be harvested at any time of the year but are at their best in the autumn[4]. The tubers can also be harvested in the autumn and will store until at least the spring[K]. Yields of 2.3 kilos of tubers per plant have been achieved[10]. Seed - cooked[19]. Rather small and not produced very freely[K], they are used like peas and beans[6][9]. A good source of protein, they can be ground into a powder and added to cereals when making bread etc[12]. Young seedpods[18][19][21][5].

Plant part
Root
Plant part
Seed
Plant part
Seedpod

Medicinal uses

Historical medicinal uses. These records describe reported uses. They do not establish safety or effectiveness. Ask a qualified health professional before using any plant medicinally.

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

The tubers were used in folk remedies for that cancerous condition known as \"Proud Flesh\" in New England. Nuts were boiled and made into a plaster, \"For to eat out the proud flesh they (the Indians) take a kind of earth nut boyled and stamped\"[13].

Material uses

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

There is one report that the plant contains a latex which could be used in the production of rubber[13].

Product or use
Latex

Environment

Range
N. America - Pennsylvania. Occasionally naturalized in S. Europe[17].
Habitat
Usually found in low damp bottomland or riparian woods and thickets, it is also often found round ancient Indian campsites[15][19][13].
Light
full sun
Shade tolerance
light shade
Water
moderate
Hardiness
Zone 3+
Soil textures
sandy, loamy
Soil pH
very acid, acid, neutral, alkaline
Drainage
well drained
Tolerates Nutritionally Poor Soil
No
Drought
intolerant

Propagation

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Seed - pre-soak for 3 hours in tepid water and sow February/March in a cold frame. The seed usually germinates in 1 - 3 months at 15°c[3]. When large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in light shade in the greenhouse for their first winter, planting them out in late spring or early summer. Division can be carried out at almost any time of the year, though spring is probably the best time. Simply dig up the roots, harvest the tubers and replant them where you want the plants to grow. It is also possible to harvest the tuber in winter, store them in a cool fairly dry but frost-free place over the winter and then plant them out in the spring. The tubers lose moisture rapidly once they have been harvested, so make sure that you store them in a damp medium such as leafmold.

Cultivation

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Prefers a light rich soil and a sunny position[1][14]. When grown in a warm dry situation in a well-drained sandy soil, the plants will be long lived with the tuberous roots increasing in size and number each year[11]. Another report says that the plant prefers light dappled shade[8]. It tolerates acid soils[4]. Dislikes windy situations[K]. Groundnut is reported to tolerate an annual precipitation in the range of 97 to 117cm, an average annual temperature range of 9.9 to 20.3°C and a pH in the range of 4.5 to 7.0[13]. It tolerates a range of climatic conditions and produces well in cool temperate zones as well as the subtropical conditions of South Florida[13]. Whilst most reports suggest that this species should be cold hardy in all parts of Britain, one report says that the plants may require protection in severe winters[3]. The groundnut has occasionally been cultivated for its edible root and has the potential to become a commercial crop[21][6]. Cultivars have been selected in the past for higher yields and larger tubers, it is said that the yields from some of these cultivars can rival potato crops[21][6]. Some of these cultivars are gradually becoming available in Britain[K]. The best yields are obtained when the plant is left in the ground for at least two growing seasons. Yields of 30 tonnes per hectare have been achieved from weed crops growing in a field of cranberries[13]. This species has been grown in the past in S. Europe[16][17] and has been suggested as a nitrogen-fixing edible ornamental for permaculturalists[10]. The plant forms long thin roots which enlarge at intervals along their length to form the tubers, the effect is somewhat like a necklace[K]. Plants can be invasive once they are established[8] and have become a weed of cultivated cranberry crops in N. America[13]. A climbing plant, twining around the thin branches of other plants for support[K]. The flowers have a scent of violets[11]. This species has a symbiotic relationship with certain soil bacteria, these bacteria form nodules on the roots and fix atmospheric nitrogen. Some of this nitrogen is utilized by the growing plant but some can also be used by other plants growing nearby[8].

References

  1. F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951-00-00

    ↩1↩2

  2. Bianchini. F., Corbetta. F. and Pistoia. M. Fruits of the Earth.

    ↩

  3. Rice. G. (Editor) Growing from Seed. Volume 2. Thompson and Morgan. 1988-00-00

    ↩1↩2

  4. Natural Food Institute, Wonder Crops. 1987.

    ↩1↩2↩3

  5. Kunkel. G. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books 1984-00-00 ISBN 3874292169

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  6. Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990-00-00 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9

    ↩1↩2↩3↩4

  7. Hedrick. U. P. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications 1972-00-00 ISBN 0-486-20459-6

    ↩

  8. Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992-00-00 ISBN 0-333-47494-5

    ↩1↩2↩3

  9. Weiner. M. A. Earth Medicine, Earth Food. Ballantine Books 1980-00-00 ISBN 0-449-90589-6

    ↩

  10. Foster. S. & Duke. J. A. A Field Guide to Medicinal Plants. Eastern and Central N. America. Houghton Mifflin Co. 1990-00-00 ISBN 0395467225

    ↩1↩2

  11. Genders. R. Scented Flora of the World. Robert Hale. London. 1994-00-00 ISBN 0-7090-5440-8

    ↩1↩2

  12. Moerman. D. Native American Ethnobotany Timber Press. Oregon. 1998-00-00 ISBN 0-88192-453-9

    ↩1↩2

  13. Duke. J. Handbook of Energy Crops - 1983-00-00

    ↩1↩2↩3↩4↩5↩6↩7

  14. Vilmorin. A. The Vegetable Garden. Ten Speed Press ISBN 0-89815-041-8

    ↩1↩2

  15. Fernald. M. L. Gray's Manual of Botany. American Book Co. 1950-00-00

    ↩

  16. Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959-00-00

    ↩

  17. ? Flora Europaea Cambridge University Press 1964-00-00

    ↩1↩2

  18. Harris. B. C. Eat the Weeds. Pivot Health 1973-00-00

    ↩1↩2

  19. Elias. T. and Dykeman. P. A Field Guide to N. American Edible Wild Plants. Van Nostrand Reinhold 1982-00-00 ISBN 0442222009

    ↩1↩2↩3↩4

  20. Howes. F. N. Nuts. Faber 1948-00-00

    ↩

  21. Saunders. C. F. Edible and Useful Wild Plants of the United States and Canada. Dover Publications 1976-00-00 ISBN 0-486-23310-3

    ↩1↩2↩3

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