Friday, October 13, 2006

Artichoke Update

For those of you just tuning in, of the dozen seeds I started in February, three of them made it into the garden this year. This is my fourth year fiddling with artichokes and the first year I have harvested any chokes. Two of the three plants produced, and once I cut the stalk back to the ground, the whole plant sort of withered and died back.

Then about 2 weeks ago new growth started from what appears to be an expanded crown below ground. No frost has threatened yet, so I am feeding and watering this new growth. The next challenge is the right kind of winter blanket to help these puppies overwinter. Any suggestions?

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3 comments:

  1. ElSaturday, October 14, 2006 10:02:00 AM

    Well, I was able to overwinter both cardoon and artichokes, but I confess that only 2 chokes of 3 made it, and only one cardoon. I hilled them up with lots of compost/dirt, then put a bed of shredded leaves (6") then straw and then tied the whole thing down with burlap. We had some weird weather in Feb., and they started growing, but I left the covers on until April. I got a smaller harvest of artichokes than the first year. (Green globes, incidentally. And we're 6B.)

    I also hacked all three plants down to the ground after their harvest to help them build up their roots. So that bodes well for your new re-sprout...

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  2. UnknownSaturday, October 14, 2006 9:54:00 PM

    No ideas for you, but that's some wicked cool foliage there. :)

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  3. LeslieSunday, October 15, 2006 2:53:00 PM

    El,

    Thanks for the suggestions. I will follow your advice.

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