Maca seed Lepidium meyenii

LATIN NAME: Lepidium meyenii

COMMON NAME: Maca

Maca grows where almost nothing else will, and it grows well. The low, hardy, perennial plant of the high Andes carries the tuft of the small, rounded leaves close to the ground and the small, grey-green flowers, to be followed by the small, rounded pods, and the thick, fleshy, turnip-like root below has been a food of the high mountains for a very long time. The root is dried, ground and eaten as the flour, and the plant is one of the fine, tough crops of the high cold valleys. It is a plant of the open, sunny, sharply drained ground.

Scientific Research & Plant Biotechnology

The maca draws the researchers of the high Andes, studied for the thick, fleshy root and the way the plant grows where the frost and the wind allow little else. The chemistry of the root and its old record as a food of the mountains have been looked at closely, and the plant keeps showing up in the work on the high-altitude crops, the root vegetables and the members of the mustard family. The tuft of the rounded leaves and the low, hardy habit have also made it a fine garden plant, and the maca is a regular subject of the studies of the hardy crops of the high world.

Ecological & Economic Value & Wide Applications

The maca is a modest plant of the high Andes with a very big reputation. The thick, fleshy root has been a food of the mountain people for a very long time, dried, ground into the flour and cooked into the porridges and the sweet drinks, and it remains a steady subject of the work on the foods of the high altitudes. The plant grows where the frost and the wind allow little else, giving the harvest where the other crops fail. It has been written up in the nutritional and the agricultural papers for the hardy root and the long record as a mountain food, and it is a fine, tough plant of the open, sunny, sharply drained garden.

Maca is one of the fine, tough crops of the high cold valleys, and the thick, fleshy root has been dried, ground and cooked into the porridges and the sweet drinks of the mountain people for a very long time. It grows where the frost and the wind allow little else.

To grow the maca from seed, press the tiny seeds into the surface of pots of moist, free-draining soil, keep the pots in a bright, cool spot and water gently, then set the young plants out in the open ground. The seedlings come through within a couple of weeks and grow on slowly. With the sun and the sharp-draining ground, the fleshy roots will swell through the cool season.

Maca (Lepidium meyenii) is a hearty root vegetable grown in the high Andes of Bolivia and Peru. Cultivated since pre-Incan times, it is prized by indigenous peoples for its nutritional and medicinal properties along with its power as an aphrodisiac, energy enhancer and hormonal balancer

Nutritional Profile:
A dietary staple for the indigenous peoples of the Andes, Maca (L. meyenii) is rich in nutrients, containing 31 different minerals, amino acids, antioxidants, alkaloids and sterols. Maca is an "adaptogen", a substance which brings the body to a heightened state of resistance to disease. Studies suggest that it has a balancing effect on the hypothalamus, which in turn balances other endocrine glands in the body.

Clinical Research:
Maca (L. meyenii) root has flourished for thousands of years in the high Andes at altitudes up to 14,000 feet, in extreme climatic conditions where few other plants can survive a single season. Scientists suggest that Maca's remarkable endurance may help to explain its energizing and adaptogenic properties. Peruvian and Chinese researchers have conducted clinical tests on both humans and animals, verifying Maca's capacity to strengthen the libido and increase sperm count.

Benefits of Maca

Increases libido and improves sexual function

Promotes hormonal balance for men and women

Relieves symptoms of menopause

Increases resistance to disease and strengthens immunity

Increases energy, endurance, and stamina

Reduces stress and improves sleep quality

For Men:
The native peoples of Bolivia and Peru have used Maca root as a libido enhancer and reproductive aid for thousands of years. Since being "rediscovered by modern science" Maca supplements have become popular as a safe and natural way to improve sexual vitality, desire and performance.

For Women:
Bolivian natives have traditionally turned to Maca root to treat a variety of female health problems, from infertility to menstrual dysfunction and menopausal difficulties. In North America, some naturopaths and clinicians suggest Maca as a safe alternative to HRT (hormone replacement therapy), for balancing hormones and improving sexual function.