Oca/ctus

I've paired up two novelties that have no real connection except that they're both new to me.

The rubicund  rootlets (they remind me of James Gillray's gouty toes) are oca, Oxalis tuberosa, a traditional food crop of the Andes that has the advantage of growing in poor soil at high altitudes and low temperatures. It's highly nutritious and packed with Vitamin C, zinc and iron. I planted a few dried up nubbles  that were left at the cafe and only today thought to look and see how they had done. They are a late crop,  the tubers only forming after the first frosts of the autumn. You cook them just like potatoes but so far I've only tried them raw when they are crisp, crunchy and slightly sharp from the oxalic acid they contain.

Oca is extensively grown in Mexico and the plate seems to channel a Mexican  vibe. It's my latest charity shop find: the cactus design caught my eye last week and I've since discovered it comes from the factory of Alfred Meakin who was one of four brothers who all started potteries in the Midlands in the 19th century. The plate is only from the 1950s but there are a couple for sale on the internet for around £12/13 (I bought mine for £1 and it's perfect even to the gold around the edge of the rim.)

For pedants only: do you say cacti or cactuses? Which is correct? According to the Grammarist website both are acceptable.
"Cactus is not the only Latin-derived English word ending in –us, and most are conventionally pluralized in the English manner. Fungus, like cactus, often becomes fungi (though funguses is just as good), but this is one of the few exceptions. Most English speakers don’t say ani instead of anuses, apparati instead of apparatuses, campi instead of campuses, octopi instead of octopuses, stati instead of statuses, or viri instead viruses, and there’s no reason cactus should be any didfferent. It’s a matter of preference, though, and cacti is not wrong."