Sunchokes

Sunchokes/Jerusalem Artichokes

Helianthus tuberosus

These beautiful native sunflowers are super easy to grow, return yearly, provide plenty of nectar for wild pollinators, and create tons of food for humans. The edible tubers can be stored long-term, and cooked much like potatoes. The tubers are one of the easiest-to-grow staple food crops; packed with plant-based protein, healthy carbs, and a good source of Iron and potassium. I think these should be a staple for every home in the U.S.

I bought these tubers from an Amish farmer at Lancaster Central Market so I assume they're a select variety. They produce a bountiful crop of flowers and tubers each summer.

These plants grow easily and aggressively. Like planting mint, I suggest growing them somewhere they can't easily spread. When you dig the tubers up in the fall (after the first frost) you can pull all the tubers out of the ground. You'll inevitably miss just a few and that small batch will be plenty to repopulate your sunchoke patch by the end of the following summer. 

When you receive your tubers you can plant them in the ground immediately.

Size/Spacing:

Plant the tubers 6in deep and about 1-3' apart. The plants will grow to be about 8' tall at their peak in late summer. They will die back each spring where you can knock the stems down and use them as mulch for the next season's crop.

Site Preference:

These want to grow in full sun. They will tolerate just about any soil. I've heard of people very successfully growing them on an old stone driveway; about as compacted and rocky soil there is. If you have the capacity for it, they would prefer well-drained soil full of organic matter. Adding a shovelful of compost around each plant in the spring is never a bad idea. Wherever you plant them, just be aware that they will spread aggressively. Some people plant in large pots, or line their bed with a thick tarp. I have planted mine where they are surrounded by my concrete driveway, or where I mow a strip around them regularly.

Hardiness:

USDA Hardiness Zones 3-8