Maca Root
Lepidium meyenii
About Maca Root
Maca Root (Lepidium meyenii) is a herb used in the Western Herbalism, Amazonian Plant Medicine and Andean & Incan Medicine traditions to help with Libido, Hormonal Imbalance, Menopause, and Fatigue, among 4 other conditions it addresses. The root (hypocotyl) is the part traditionally used, taken internally.
Botanical background
Lepidium meyenii (maca) is an herbaceous biennial plant of the crucifer family native to the high Andes of Peru. It was found at the Meseta de Bombón close to Junin Lake in the Andes. It is grown for its fleshy hypocotyl (a fused hypocotyl and taproot), which is used as a root vegetable and a medicinal herb. Its Spanish and Quechua names include maca-maca, maino, ayak chichira, and ayak willku.
Source: Wikipedia, via iNaturalist