Ahhh, "sunchokes". 

Put in a bunch when we first moved to the Mosquito Infested Bog in 1970.  They 
thrived pretty much on their on for 20 years. Didn't much like the flavor, 
myself, so we didn't bother them much.  The sugar is a pentose, I think.  The 
flowers were nice.  My cousin liked them, and so we did always dig some for  
Easter dinner, first crop of the season, along with the parsnips, if the voles 
would let us have some of those. 

Nick 

Nicholas Thompson
Emeritus Professor of Ethology and Psychology
Clark University
thompnicks...@gmail.com
https://wordpress.clarku.edu/nthompson/
 


-----Original Message-----
From: Friam <friam-boun...@redfish.com> On Behalf Of Steve Smith
Sent: Wednesday, August 5, 2020 9:53 PM
To: friam@redfish.com
Subject: [FRIAM] Sunchoke rhizomes


On 8/5/20 8:37 PM, jon zingale wrote:
> Sunchokes are very tasty. Do they grow easily out where you are?

yes, they do particularly like water, but can suffer without too much...
my best bed is near my (leaky) water faucet.   The other bed I have going got 
(mostly) grazed out by my chickens who don't go after them harshly but have 
ultimately stopped them all excepting one which is about 7' tall with no leaves 
below about 3 feet... I caught one jumping up and grabbing a bite out of a 
lower leaf yesterday.

I've a friend who grows them commercially who got started by simply going to 
Sprouts and buying up the tiniest nodules from their organic bin to plant... he 
says "much cheaper than seed stock, and just as viable/clean".    I can't even 
remember where I got my first starts, they are very self-perpetuating...  even 
if/when I dig them wihtout intentional re-seeding(rhizoming), they do come back 
from the (tiny?) fragments I apparently miss/leave.   Not as dense as if I 
deliberately leave/break-off the smallest nodules to leave behind.

They don't start in a new bed as easily as an old one, so I'm guessing there is 
some mycorhizomial thing going on that takes a season to re-establish.

- Steve




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