So I got some Jerusalem Artichoke tubers from someone. Planted them... the plants are HUGE (5ft plus tall). I'm wondering... when do I harvest the tubers - which I understand are used similarly to potatoes? I thought I read somewhere that they flower... but I've not seen any flowers on them. They look like sunflower plants, so was expecting a somewhat similar flower... but nothing. They've been in the ground since early April I think... plenty of time to grow I'd think.

Does anyone have any experience with these? When do I harvest, how do I store (like potatoes??), etc??

I don't recall a time when they didn't flower during the growing season, so not sure what that indicates. I've always waited until after a hard freeze to harvest them. Then I lightly brushed off any loose soil. (Careful, they are as thin-skinned as some members of these forums. Wait until you use them to clean them.) Store them cold but above freezing and in high humidity.

Wayne

One caveat - some folks can have an allergic reaction to them, so it's best to try them in a judicious serving the first time around.

Hello!

I grew them in NC and they did have small, sunflower-like flowers, so I can't help with that question, either...sorry.

But, because it would drive me crazy not to know what's going on underground, I would have to dig a small area just to see if they are there, but I bet they are!

Maybe it is a special, sterile breed that doesn't flower & go to seed? All I can think of to explain no flowers!

quote:

Originally posted by Jen's Garden:
So I got some Jerusalem Artichoke tubers from someone. Planted them... the plants are HUGE (5ft plus tall). I'm wondering... when do I harvest the tubers - which I understand are used similarly to potatoes? I thought I read somewhere that they flower... but I've not seen any flowers on them. They look like sunflower plants, so was expecting a somewhat similar flower... but nothing. They've been in the ground since early April I think... plenty of time to grow I'd think.

Does anyone have any experience with these? When do I harvest, how do I store (like potatoes??), etc??

Mine are about 15 feet tall They usually flower very late in the season (mine started about two weeks ago.) They have cheery yellow flowers that are similar to small sunflowers.

Like Wayne, I start harvesting after a freeze. I don't harvest them all at once because I haven't had much luck storing them -- mine tend to shrivel up. Of course, that means I have to pile leaves on top of them so that the ground doesn't freeze.

Are you sure you didn't miss the flowers? Grasshoppers like them and they don't stand a chance so you can blink and miss them. Are there tops where little flowers were and are now dried up?
After flowering the roots get bigger (just like potatoes) but you can wait til frost touches the plant and they will be easier to dig. The chokes are very perishable and need cool and very moist.

I have regular and red sunchokes. The red ones bloomed much later than the regular and I dug them today and they seem like they will be as invasive as people say they are. I dug two plants and they have long runners that spread much further than the regular sunchokes.

Also the regular chokes have a lot of rotten bits. I have way too many so it is ok, but I wondered why there are so many with rotten bits. Anyone know?

I think we used to start harvesting them about the time they flowered, taking a few at a time since they don't keep well. They make great great fresh, crispy snacks--about like water chestnuts in flavor and texture--and left the rest in the ground til we wanted them. We never replanted--there were enough left in the ground to make a bumper crop the next year.

Thanks everyone. Sounds like I wait longer to try harvesting, so glad I asked.

As for the flowers... if they flowered awhile ago, it's possible I could have missed them. I was out of town one week in June, and have been somewhat neglectful of the garden in the past month - although I don't see ANY sign of flowers at this time... no dead ones, nothing.

I DID cut them back quite a bit early on. Had an eggplant planted near them that kept getting shaded out, so I supposed that could have stunted the flower production.

I did put them in a raised bed, knowing they are invasive, so I'm hoping they'll be easy to harvest. I think I'll do as other said and harvest as I need them, letting the rest store in the ground. We've done that even with potatoes and it seems to work fairly well, at least for awhile.