When to harvest sun chokes. Let’s get to know how to harvest the sun’s chokes. The sun chokes are commonly known as Jerusalem artichokes.
When to harvest sun chokes
Scientifically they are termed Helianthus tuberosus.
They have various benefits and advantages, but this plant is not grown much nowadays.
Features
- Perennial plant
- Edible
- Available throughout winters
- Require low maintenance
- Contain less caloric contents
- Ideal plant for beginners
Height of Plant
- The sunchokes may reach up to 10 feet high.
- Hardiness zone– 3-8
Native
- The sunchokes are native to North America.
Fruit
- They produce white-fleshed edible tubers which do not require peeling.
Planting sunchokes
Requirements
- Tubers
- Require loose, well-drained, and fertile soil
- Full sunlight
- Alkaline soil with PH 6.5
Required Temperature
- Sun chokes produce healthy tubers between 65 and 90 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Ensure that the soil temperature must be 50 degrees F at planting time.
- In the places where the climate is warmer, plant sun chokes in early fall and reap them till spring.
Planting Season
- Sunchokes need to be grown in the early spring.
Procedure
- To grow sunchokes, take a few tubers and plant them 4-6 inches (10-15 cm.) deep.
- Maintain an adequate spacing of 12-18 inches (30-45 cm.) between the tubers.
- If the tubers possess sprouts, do not bury the shoots under the soil.
- Make the shoots visible. It will help in a quick break-off.
- You can also plant a small section of the tuber.
- Avoid dry tubers.
- Plant the tuber part that contains a bud on it.
- The shoot will start to form from that bud.
- After providing desired conditions and care, a single tuber can produce up to twenty new tubers.
Conditions Required
- Watering
- Provide an adequate water supply to the sun’s chokes.
- Proper watering will produce a healthy plant.
- Maintain the stalk length up to 4 feet (120 cm) high in mid-summer.
- Provide the plant with proper nourishment
- Plant Companion species with your sunchokes including;
- Rhubarb, peanuts, and corn.
- Monitor the plant for pests and rot
Harvesting sunchokes
Season
Harvest the sun chokes after the first frost. After 120-150 days of planting the sun, the choke is ready to be harvested. Sun chokes begin to die between autumn and November.
Harvesting Procedure
- Take a spading fork and try to loosen the soil.
- At the same time, garb the sun choke stems, and provide force to pull out the tuber.
- It’s just like pulling out a carrot from the soil.
- After taking out the tuber, soak them in a water container for up to five minutes.
- After that, gently clean them with the use of a scrub brush.
- Remove all the specks of dirt and soil from the tubers.
- Put the tubers in another water container and clean them well.
- Take them out, dry them and store them in a well-suited place.
Storage
- To store the sun chokes tubers, you need to place them in a perforated plastic bag.
- Keep the bag in the refrigerator.
- You can store it for up to 10 days or even for months in the case of the root cellar.
- To prevent the tuber from shriveling, place them in a cool place with high moisture content.
Cultivars to Select
If you are wondering, which kind of sun choke is to be grown? We have discussed a few cultivars you need to try out. Select the one that best fits your garden culinary needs.
Following are the better, prominent, flavored, colorful, and easy-to-grow varieties of sunchokes;
- Stampede
- White Fuseau
- Red Fuseau
- Waldspinel-Gem of the Forest
Managing Pests and Disease Control
Sun chokes are affected by the following pests and diseases;
- Slugs
- Snails
- Sclerotinia rot
- Ster yellows
Conclusion
The sunchokes are commonly known as Jerusalem artichokes. Scientifically they are termed Helianthus tuberosus. The sunchokes tubers harvest after the first frost.
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