This is something new to me that is apparently gaining popularity here in the US. I'm curious if anyone here has grown it or eaten it? How are the potatoes? Are the leaves edible and are they minty?
African potato mint
- Thread starter vette-kid
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Apparently also known as Chinese potato. Plectranthus rotundifolius or Solenostemon rotundifolius
Only found this one selling https://www.amazon.com/Chinese-Pota...qid=1537120067&sr=8-1&keywords=Chinese+potato
so it is rare, this is the first I have heard about the vegetable.
so it is rare, this is the first I have heard about the vegetable.
They sell it at wellspring gardens, but is out of stock at the moment
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Apparently it is fairly difficult to grow in most US climates. The following link explains quite a bit about this vegetable.
https://uses.plantnet-project.org/en/Plectranthus_rotundifolius_(PROSEA)
https://uses.plantnet-project.org/en/Plectranthus_rotundifolius_(PROSEA)
My take away from that was easy propagation and disease resistance. Sandy well drained should are a plus and dies well in got humid climates. Sounds like a great fit for Florida!
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I think this might be a good experiment for the southern states but I am dubious about its success. I am leery about low temperatures not being low enough. If I can find some I will try it once maybe twice depending on costs. From what I understand from web data they aren't really a potato substitute but more of a condiment and aren't a staple anywhere
I gathered that it was usable as a potato substitute, but just not really commercially available as such. The Irish potato pretty well had the market covered there, and as there are no problem with it, marketing this as a substitute would be a challenge. I'm willing to try it given it seems rather inexpensive. But if the quality and taste are on par with an Irish potato is probably stick to the Irish. I do love mine though, so if there is any mint quality to the vegetation, why not have both. But from my reading i don't believe that to be the case