What native American plant has an edible tuberous root and is a close family connection to the sunflower? Give up? The so-called Jerusalem artichoke!
Not from Jerusalem and certainly not an artichoke, how could we have perpetuated such an appalling misnomer? Since our country’s beginnings when the Spanish called it girasole, their word for flowers attracted to the sun (now loosely translated into Jerusalem), this plant has been misrepresented by its own name. Called artichoke because the early settlers compared its flavor to globe artichoke, it is properly
Helianthus tuberousa, a name meaning tuberous rooted sunflower. Sunny flowered it is, blooming now from Nova Scotia to Georgia you can spot it easily. Even our gardening-challenged neighbors have pointed and said “What’s that plant?”.
The edible tuberous roots are starch free and contain inulin, a carbohydrate the body converts into a natural form of sugar making them particularly valuable in all diets especially diabetic or other restricted diets.
Pseudo-potatoes, mild and flavorful, they can be made into delicious dishes by preparing them the same way you would the more popular potato. Smaller, only two to four inches or so they are also slightly lower in calorie count and have their own flavor, so don’t compare them to other veggies.
Steam them, boil them, cook with an oven roast for 30-45 minutes or fry them. They mix well with green vegetables, giving a crunchy texture many find highly desirable. Saute the sliced sunchoke roots with onions in oil for a few minutes then stir fry in some chard, spinach, beet greens or broccoli for an epicurean dish. Season as you wish with salt and pepper or a bit of garlic, savory and a touch of mint is nice or try a dash of nutmeg for indefinable goodness. Bake them, add to casseroles, cream of celery soup, slice thinly for salads, pickle them, or cut as crudites for dips. Their nut like flavor is similar to water chestnuts.
The beauty of sunchokes is they are ridiculously easy to grow. Sun or shade, rich or poor soil, wet or dry places, weeded or cultivated, they always produce a crop. Once planted you will always have them for they are remarkably hardy, pest free and easily propagated. Strong perennials, sometimes growing to 12 feet tall, should be planted a foot and a half apart in an out of the way corner where they will make an effective screen or summer hedge. You must harvest them or tubers left in the ground will multiply and get out of control. That’s a word to the wise.
Growing easily everywhere, this wildflower can be left in the ground until needed so storage is no problem. No need to spend precious energy processing or freezing sunchokes. When you dig them , you can count on a pound of the knobby tubers per plant. It’s easy enough to perpetuate your supply by leaving the smallest ones in the ground for next years harvest.
Known to the Native Americans as “
Askibwan” a name not likely to catch hold (meaning “raw thing”) they taught the colonists to use the roots as food. Even if you choose not to nibble on the root the golden yellow daisy like flowers, more a floppy daisy than a sunflower, and always growing in a cluster of three are a pretty bonus to the garden. Pick them now for an enjoyable fall flower arrangement with no damage to the crop.
Every year, our Jim Thorpe sister creates a Halloween character, and when the season is over, we 'inherit' the character for our gardens. This herbal witch is one from years past, and we are glad to welcome her to our garden.
Last night was Trick or Treat, and these glowing pumpkins with personality lit up the backyard, welcoming all to the gardens. Tonight is our annual Garlic Dinner, the neighborhood is already beginning to smell of the 'stinking rose'.
It covered the wide variety of gourds and some of there very many uses: as instruments, bird houses, bowls, masks and even as floats that served as water wings. This page is just one of the games in the book.
Ricinus communis, a tropical ornamental plant, grown as an annual in southcentral PA, and will reach only about 10 feet in height. A large fast growing plant, it provides a lovely foliage screen over the summer months. Shown here are the flowers. The fruit which follows is a capsule containing three large seeds which are the source of commercial Castor oil. The dark seeds are shiny and extremely poisonous.
We have done a lot to it over the past 24 years, but every time I look, there is more to do. It is compelling and giving shape to my retirement years. We have left most of the property wooded. Over the years we have fenced in a series of raised beds, cleared some of the shrubby growth away from the stone walls, installed a mucky little pond for the spring peepers,and established garden beds around the house. Two years ago, we put an addition on the front of the house and changed the foundation planting.
Now I am making lazy beds in the front yard and planning gardening projects for next spring. The expanded deck on the side of the house is almost done and I have plans for planting around it.
A Symbol of Hope
My favorite part is always the epitaphs on the tomb stones. 
"If he had been more SAGE, he'd still be here today"
Eupatorium purpureum aka Queen of the Meadow aka Gravel Root aka Joe Pye Weed is a perennial that is quite easy to grow. It can easily be naturalized in the wild garden and will also grow in low marshy ground. The rosy/purple flowers at the top of a 5 to 6 foot plant are just so pretty and last from August up until a hard frost. It attracts a large variety of butterflies to the garden. Named for Joe-Pye, a Native American Herbalist who used it to cure fevers/typhus, it is a native American wild flower and can still be used medicinally. The name gravel root refers to its helpfulness with kidney stones or gravel. It is also helpful in urinary infections such as cystitis and urethritis. Joe pye weed can be of benefit in a protocol for gout as well.
(Note: Joe Pye Weed should not be confused with Joe Pa. Go Penn State!)
