OK, I've tried those: Oca didn't work for me last year -- as said in the various things I've read about it, it's a short day plant, and didn't start to form tubers until around October 1st, then, as I figured, frost got it. I did bring some of the pots into storage -- they have little tubers, so will regrow, but nothing big enough to eat. I think this year, I'm going to try throwing black cloth over the plants every night starting in August and see what that yields. Crosne, on the other hand, is easy. Treat it like the mint family plant that it is, give it rich, moist, loamy soil, and you'll get a good crop. The little tubers taste good, sort of like waterchestnuts, but they look kind of like some kind of big grub! The only problem I've found with it is that voles seem to love the taste of them, too. YACON -- ok, this one is a great plant, IMO -- gives big, sweet potato like tuberous roots that store really well, are sweet and crispy with a mild carrot flavor. Nice in stir fried dishes, salads, etc. Plant seems to be easy to grow, based on my 2 season with it, productive, easy to store the propagative tubers over the winter in the basement like I store dahlias and glads.

Heavens yes this was an interesting thread. I've had no luck with these beauties at all. Complete collapse and rot is usually the order of the day. In fact it only takes mine three days to turn to mush. I used to grow them extremely easily before I moved to the wet sub tropics, moisture was never a problem. It's still a mystery to me why they won't do here but I think Im beginning to understand, partially at least. Thing is where they grow wild in South Africa (mainly, think there's one or two species in Madagascar and Kenya) they do get lots of summer rain, they also (and this just makes me mad) grow in seasonal damp boggy places in full scotching African sun. From the coast up into the high mountains various species flourish in the summer rainfall region of Natal where most of the many many South Africas species come from. I've seen them happily sitting in a foot of water on the hottest day imaginable, along low lying river beds almost at sea level where hippos snort, marshy ground and depressions in the cool mountains, thriving in summer rain! There is something going on but I can't fully explain it. Firstly as Sun_worshipper says the species is important and there are hundreds. Unfortunately K.uvaria seems to be the one which has been mostly hybridised in Europe at least. This sadly is the single species from the winter rainfall area of the Cape province in South Africa, a Mediterranean climate. K, uvaria's influence must be a tenacious one, because given the many hybrids and cultivars available that K.uvaria cannot be wholly responsible for they still all remain susceptible ton summer wet. It's influence no matter how little seems to be carried in most of the cultivars in their susceptibility to summer wet. However this doesn't explain why the same plants do so well in places like the UK with it's full on summer drench. No it doesn't get very hot there and sunny days are few and far between. It's still summer wet. Maybe they grow the deciduous varieties only that have their own requirements, these are mostly from the high mountain regions in South Africa so have more hardiness, possibly K.uvaria is not as dominant in their cultivars. i just don't know. Two I tried from the Netherlands collapsed in a few days planted out, it could just be the combination heat and wet that gets them. Cool temperate summer weather and wet seems to be OK. Though I do see they always say good drainage. Most in Natal are evergreen, they also don't need a cold freezing winter either, they aren't cold stimulated flowerers nor are they short day flowerers. However the differences in altitude are obviously very important to what they prefer. They do resent disturbance. For example If you divide a clump it sets them back three years no matter how carefully you do it. There is one in particular which I think would do well for our zones as it is. There's a few in fact, but this one is magnificent. Its a giant and grows extremely vigorously in marshy ground right at sea level in Natal which is as close to Tropical as South Africa gets besides the Limpopo. Using that to hybridise new varieties avoiding K.uvaria like the plague would be the way to go. There are many fascinating and delightful species close to sea level in Natal that could be used. It's a sign of madness but I still went and bought two K.uvaria cultivars yesterday. Im thinking of growing them under cover as the only solution. Under cover for the whole summer and in sunshine exposed through the dry cool season. This is not a fantastic solution as I don't have a green house. I will definately be acquiring the sea level monster and any others I can during Christmas time when Im due for a safari in Natal. Meantime Im enjoying a few flowers with plants in the shade under cover. Taking them out just for rainless sunny days is just too much but who knows I might take pity. I would suggest growers look beyond K. uvaria because we are missing out on a stunning garden plant.

OM89, that makes sense for what you're actually growing, your area must be much more like Silvia's. I've given up on growing squash in containers, they don't do well and I've come to the conclusion that although the roots don't appear substantial they are runners and need lots of space so that would account for them not doing well in a SFG. Also, what Lou says about the squash is true and I have to be at work by 6:00 A.M., by the time I get home in the afternoon all the morning flowers from the squash are already too spent to hand pollinate. The last two seasons I've tried two varieties of parthenocarpic squash but they didn't do well either. Now, the parthenocarpic cukes were another story, they did very well inside my swiming pool cage where I didn't have to spray for pickleworm, the quick nemesis of my garden cukes since the garden is only 8' from the lake...very buggy down there until we finally get a cooling off period overnight. I keep my tomato plants well spaced from each other due to the gardens proximity to the lake, extremely humid too, and I never have blight and rarely other fungal diseases because of good air circulation around each individual plant, so for me "less is more" but I do see Silvia's plants up against each other so for you that might not be a problem. Tom

Dirtygardener, you have alot of company here, and alot of company who have dug themselves out of the emotional loss of a beloved garden. Many here have suffered through job loss, loss of home, loss of loved ones. We eventually do find our way back into the sunshine, and you can too. I know some have suggested volunteer work in a community garden. It's a great idea. Or, what about checking out the global movement of Guerrilla Gardeners? Some communities have so much need for some greening up, and some will surely welcome your expertise. We've all lost plants, more than I can count, on my end. I think some of the more successful gardeners here in the deep south have lived in their homes long enough to have some established shade-giving trees and plantings. Those without any shade at all have the brutallest conditions, for sure. I've lost a couple of fruit trees here this past Winter, in the drought. I tried so hard to keep things watered, but there's only so much one can do, when the landlord doesn't want to repair the sprinkler system. And I'm not about to pay for supplies and labor to fix the thing myself. So I grow in pots, and they are mostly in shady areas, where I have some chance of keeping them alive, even thriving. Hook up with other people, not just gardeners. What were your hobbies in good times? Can you offer some expertise to a scouting group, or through some of the local associations? It's always amazing how friendships become just that more interesting when one discovers some common interests, previously not shared. If you were local, we would surely snag you for a garden swap. Just do it! Randy