Blog, flowers, oca (Oxalis tuberosa)
Oca: Flower forms
I use the descriptors established by the International Institute of Phytogenetic Resources for the oca (Oxalis tuberosa) profiles on this site. They define three flower forms: round, starlike, and pentagonal. Here is what each of them looks like:
Round is defined as 75% or greater overlap of the petals.
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| Round oca flower |
Starlike is defined as >50% to <75% overlap of the petals.
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| Starlike oca flower |
Pentagonal is defined as 25 to 30% overlap of the petals.
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| Pentagonal oca flower |
If it seems strange to you that there are undefined gaps between 30 and 50% and between 0 and 25%, join the club. Maybe those degrees of overlap just don’t occur.
Those are all pretty straightforward, but sometimes they make classification difficult. The following picture shows a six-petaled oca flower. I have also seen flowers with seven petals. Some varieties produce frequent double flowers as well.
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| This is apparently hexagonal. Most appropriately, it is just a variant of the pentagonal type, I suppose. |
Oca seeds and tubers are sometimes available in our seed shop.