The great big thread of sunchoke info - growing, storing, eating/recipes, science facts

Stephen B. Thomas wrote:I'd posted our latest video about the length of the sunchoke harvesting season. Things grew wonderfully through the month of October. I think it will be even more impressive at the end of November.

If I were to be somewhat technical about it, I would say all those sunchokes came from about three square feet of surface area on a hugelkultur garden bed.

That's quite impressive, Stephen. I'm impressed especially by the fact that they were all clustered close to the parent plant: That is usually a problem with sunchokes (Have roots, will travel 10 ft)
It seems to me that more than the 'fartiness', it is really the bad habit sunchokes have of wandering too deep and where they are not wanted that is preventing them from becoming as popular as potatoes.
Did you use a special cultivar? I know OIKOS had some that they have selected for their ability to stay close to the mother plant.

We had a hard freeze three days ago and killed the sunchoke tops. I pulled one up and this is how the tubers look like. I don't think it's a trait to stay jammed. More likely because the top soil is shallow and subsoil is rock hard, plus I watered or mulched just around the base in summer drought. Another plant in a shadier spot with better soil had roots traveling much farther and deeper.