Organically Grown Artichoke
I just love growing perennial vegetables. Once you’ve got them into their permanent position (after making sure it’s rich with organic matter and fertile) they take very little work and provide you with lovely produce every year – some, like asparagus, for many years.
Here’s a photo of one of my artichoke plants with several developing heads – taken a couple of weeks ago – mid summer here.
You have to learn when to harvest the succulent heads, cause if you leave them too long you’ll end up with a beautiful thistle flower – pretty, but not edible. 
Once you’ve harvested all on the stalk, cut it off near the base. New side-shoots will grow next season, which will produce your new heads.
Give them a go – they’re really easy to grow, make a beautiful, contrasting architectural plant and they’re yummy.
Happy Organic Gardening, Healthy Living…
Filed under: vegetables
Julie, I would like to grow asparagus, are the plants easy to obtain? and how long do they take to grow before you can harvest?
Regards
Brian
Hi Brian,
in South Australia asparagus plants are really easy to get as crowns in August – the month before spring. You can sometimes get small potted asparagus plants year round, but the crowns are more sturdy – so look for them in August. Have a plot ready for them to be planted in, rich with rotted manure and other organic matter, as they’ll stay in the same position for as long as they live (about 15 – 20 years, depending on conditions).
You don’t harvest the same season you plant the crowns. You want them to establish in their position and gain some strenght, so just allow the fronds to grow long and dry at the end of summer. In their second year you can very lightly harvest and in third and subsequent years you can harvest as much as you want.
warm regards,
Julie