It is possible to grow the Jerusalem artichokes in containers, @Don Alaska . I am never able to dig mine up because Bobby always mows them to the ground each fall; so this year, I am going to start some in one of the planters that Bobby built in front of the house, where they won’t get mowed down, and will be easy to dig this fall. Even if you can’t overwinter yours, you should be able to save starter tubers after you harvest this fall, and then replant in the spring. You might have a long enough growing season if they are in your greenhouse ? I am going to plant some regular potatoes, the sun chokes, and some of the horseradish in the raised bed that Bobby made, so I should be able to get the tubers from all three of those this fall, and both the sun chokes and the horseradish can spread in there if they want to.
It is warming up enough that I am able to get outside some now. I am still pretty unstable walking around, and can’t find the walking stick that Bobby made for me last year, but I have been using a lightweight shovel for stability. I have mint coming up, and dandelions and violets as well, and the comfrey and mullein are doing good and should produce this year.
I haven't tried them in a container, @Yvonne Smith but they don't make it through winter in the ground. My wife grows some kind of perennial sunflowers, but they are not the sunchokes and I have no idea how big the tubers get--if they even form tubers. You should still be able to dig them even if @Bobby Cole mows them down. We do grow horseradish, and it doesn't get as big or as hot as it does in other places, but it still gets us through the winter on beef roasts, etc. The horseradish is far away form the house, so I don't care if it spreads...but it doesn't spread much.
Once he mows them, I can’t tell where they were at, and also the ground here is hard clay, and almost impossible to dig unless it is really wet, and then it is a goopy mud. I think that growing some in the containers will work the best for me.
I’m always the bad guy. Smart husbands who do not want any flack know too well to consult with the lady of the house before mowing down her plants.
I just saw this video today. They had Dandelions, Chickweed, Hostas, & Violets fresh out of the yard and sauteed for lunch.
Is that a North Carolina twang? We are still buried in snow, but we have a few greens planted in the greenhouse that are not up yet. When we eat dandelions, we just cook bacon and pour the hot grease over the washed greens, add a little vinegar perhaps and sprinkle the crushed bacon over the top. When we lived in North Carolina, my wife developed a cooked greens dish that is quite tasty even if things like "creasy greens" and ramps don't grow wild here.
I know it is hard to dig but a garden fork really makes a difference digging in hard to dig soil, like heavy thick rooted grassy areas. I had to use my garden fork yesterday removing the grass where I want to plant flowers. Then I could shovel to put in border.
Yes; she lives in southern NC, near a wide spot in the road called Brasstown just a few miles from GA.
I went to a wild foods seminar where the woman recommended that the dandelions would not be so bitter later if you removed the center rib.
I just discovered a new plant that grows all over in our yard is an edible one. It is called “Deadnettle”, and is a relative to a stinging nettle (but does not sting), and also is in the mint family and has square edged stems. It comes up early in the spring, and I have always wondered what it was and if it was an edible plant, but never bothered to look it up. The guy making the video said that he tried cooking and eating it and was not impressed; but he does like the teas made from deadnettle. You have to gather it and dry the leaves before making the tea. I have a lot of this stuff growing , so now that I know what it is, I might see what else it is good for.
I had to kill off one patch of JA because they take over the whole garden if you let them. I covered the whole area with heavy plastic and weights. Transferred some to my manure pile at the farm. I dig them after the fall turns cold and put them in a drawer in the fridge. The cold makes the tubers sweet. Yum!