A Gardeners Forum Forums Gardening Reference Gardening in 2006 Artichoke Worries

I've been trying for years to grow artichokes (without success) in Japan, where I live. It gets quite hot in my area, so this year mine have been planted where they get shade in the afternoon, the hottest time of day.

I am trying to grow a variety which allows harvesting the same year which they are planted.

I planted my artichokes in fertile ground more than two months ago. I would guess that the root system is developing, because the leaves which have been coming out get bigger and bigger; yet the plants are no more than a foot high at this time!

I had been expecting that the plants would be much taller by now. I have given up hope of eating home grown artichoke this year at least.

I would be most grateful for some advice regarding this problem, if indeed there is a problem.

I read somewhere that artichokes will go dormant if it gets too hot and that they need lots of mulch.

Do you have cold winters? I have also read that you can cut the plants down in the fall before the first frost and cover them with straw, then put a box or bucket over the top. This protects them and they will start growing again in the spring.

I wish I could help you but I am also trying to grow artichokes for the first time. I am growing Imperial Star. I started out with 7 plants and now I only have 4. Two of them are in the ground and 2 are in large pots that I will bring inside during the winter and keep in a cool room.

My plants look very immature and are only about 8 inches high and I started them several months ago indoors. I am going to keep trying until I get it right. I love artichokes but I have limited income and they are just too expensive to buy.

Good luck and keep trying.

It gets cold here but it rarely snows. My artichokes were planted by a wall which will protect them from the north wind. I do plan to cover them toward the end of autumn, and I will sprinkle a little fertilizer around them as well.

I'm hoping that the plants will grow larger than they will have by the end of this year's growing season. I'm no expert. We'll just have to see what works and what doesn't.

my sister grows artichokes, but the first year she didn't get any fruits from it, second year she did well, got about 5 of them off the plant, this year she did SO well, she couldn't give them away fast enough, they were opening up and giving her beautiful flowers.
She said in our climant (Hot summer around 100 degrees, cold winters around 50 degrees) the first year usually wont produce anything, but after that they give a good harvest....too much....lol.

Well, that's a very encouraging message!

It seems as though the climate where your sister lives is at least a bit similar to this part of Japan.

I'm looking forward to see what happens next year!