Globe Artichoke

What a fantastic plant! If you have space and it doesn’t have
to be in your vegetable garden, plant some Artichokes. Globe
artichokes are stunning landscape plants and will create
dramatic effect in your garden.

You can purchase small plants of Artichokes in a “tube” size
pot. Globe artichoke plants will grow to around 1.5 metres
high and wide.

Planted in late autumn, mulch your new plants plants well
with an organic compost or well rotted down humus mixed
with straw.
The Artichoke will anchor down to produce a solid root
system, ready to punch out in spring with flower stems.

The flower bud is what we harvest and eat before it opens
to a pretty purple thistle like flower. The flower stem of the
plant is also very delicious, be mindful when harvesting
for the kitchen that you leave at least 150mm of length
on the stem.

Artichokes are dry tolerant, sun hardy, and produce large
clumps of silver grey handsome toothed leaves that blend
beautifully with bronze foliage and purple blooms. Globe
Artichokes will create dramatic effect in the garden, use
them as backdrops, bold borders, or lone clumps.

Provide artichokes with full sun, plenty of broken down
manure, and if you like a bit of potash to encourage
flower stems. Apply potash in late August.


Youtube – how to prepare an artichoke for cooking.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_FT8iSDxFq0