A Maryland Native Edible Vine
Apios americana – American Groundnut
Apios americana, or American Groundnut is a herbaceous perennial vine in the legume family. Preferring full sun to partial shade and medium to moist conditions, Groundnut is easily cultivated in the home garden. The vines enjoy some humus in the soil and it fixes it’s own nitrogen, making new edible tubers along the rhizome. Groundnut can grow 8-16 feet tall and 3-6 feet wide. Plant tubers two to three inches deep in the fall or spring and use a trellis to train upward. Rhizomes can spread underground around 3 feet away, so give it room to grow. Indigenous people of the Americas used it extensively, but it is currently only cultivated commercially for food by Japan. It is the larval host for the Silver-spotted Skipper (Epargyreus clarus) and other insects.
Tuber Harvesting & Preparing
Golf ball sized tubers will be the best for cooking, the larger tubers are often stringy. Allow the plant to establish at least one year before harvesting tubers and the best time to harvest is in the fall. Some people can have an allergy to Groundnut that causes digestive distress, so it is recommended to only try a small amount at first. Wash, peel, and cook like you would a potato. The tubers contain around 3 times the amount of protein as potatoes (source) and are rich in fiber. The flowers and seed pods are also edible and can be cooked like peas. If you’re growing it as a food crop, you might have to protect the bed as mammals enjoy the tubers too!
