﻿Inventory 44, Seeds and Plants Imported 



Plant of the Oca, Oxalis tuberosa Molina, from the Mountains of 

 Peru and Bolivia, Showing the Rootstocks and the Typical Oxalis 

 Foliage. (See S. P. I. Nos. 41 168 to 41 176.) 



This plant, which has the general appearance of a large sheep sorrel, attains a height of a foot or 

 more and bears 20 or more thickened rootstocks, which are largely used for food, being second 

 only in importance to potatoes in some districts of Peru and Bolivia. The plant may be suit- 

 able for acid soils, as certain related species are, and the tubers may have value for salads or 

 pickles, if not for general use as a vegetable. The rootstocks sometimes attain a length of 

 3 inches, with a diameter of 1| inches, and vary greatly in form and color, but are generally 

 attractive in appearance. (Photographed by G. B. Gilbert for the Yale- National Geographic 

 Society Peruvian Expedition, Sicuani, Peru, April 10, 1915; about one-fourth natural size; 

 P17751CA.) 



