Artichoke

Artichokes – northwest Georgia’s leading cash crop.

Or was that central California?

This was the “just because” plant of this summer’s garden. I wanted to give them a shot. Just because.

Just because I would be the only person in northwest Georgia I know who has tried it

Just because they are a cool looking plant even if I don’t get any ‘chokes

Just because I found seeds for a variety alleged to be able to give chokes in zone 7 in one season

Just because Mrs cohutt thinks artichokes are tasty

Just because ……..

Well, I did something (else) stupid; I planted the two surviving seed starts (they are a finicky seed to germinate and have survive) against a fence where the mid to late afternoon sun would be filtered a bit. No big deal, except on the same fence just to the south of these I planted a single Tommie Toe cherry tomato plant.

This single tomato plant has grown to the point that it now has enough mass to affect the tides in the south pacific. I’ve never seen anything like it; one artichoke was smothered and one got a lot less of the mid day sun that I planned. I had basically written them off a few weeks ago as having any hope of producing.

So last week I see that peaceful Valley Farm Supply, my seed garlic vendor of choice these days, sells artichoke crowns. Hmm, I think, so you can lift the crowns and transplant them…… I guess I’ll try again next year with these two plants…

So as long as I’ve decided I’m going to transplant them, why not make sure they get a little water now and then?

Here is what the larger one looked like by now:

And with the view panned out a bit, you can see the smaller smothered one peeking out from under the behemoth,

See what i mean? These aren’t the gorgeous plants like the California pictures I found online..

But wait… is it? No way,

Yes- a miniature artichoke bud has appeared. Well look at that.