How to grow Artichoke

Cynara cardunculus · Globe Artichoke

A large perennial thistle, 1–1.8 m tall, grown for its edible flower buds. Plants usually crop from the second summer after planting and stay productive for about 5–10 years.

Quick facts

Type	Vegetable
Family	Asteraceae
Light	Full sun
Soil pH	6–7
Frost	tolerates light frost
Soil for sowing	from 15 °C
Germination	21 days
Sowing to harvest	365 days
Where it grows	Greenhouse, Open ground

When to plant

It tolerates light frost: sow straight into the bed about three weeks before your last spring frost.

In an unheated greenhouse everything moves about three weeks earlier.

The first harvest comes about 365 days after the shoots appear.

Frost dates · When to plant

Care

Greenhouse

Stage	Watering	Temperature	Feeding
Growth	every 7 days	13…24 °C	nitrogen, 28 days into the stage; nitrogen, 56 days into the stage
Flowering	every 7 days	—	—
Harvest	every 7 days	—	—

Open ground

Stage	Watering	Temperature	Feeding
Growth	every 7 days	13…24 °C	nitrogen, 28 days into the stage; nitrogen, 56 days into the stage
Flowering	every 7 days	—	—
Harvest	every 7 days	—	—

Growing notes

Light

Needs a warm, sunny spot.

Soil

Deep, fertile, well-drained soil with plenty of organic matter, pH 6–7. Avoid waterlogged or cold spots; the crowns rot in saturated soil.

Care

Plant 75–90 cm apart. Water regularly in the first season and in dry spells while buds form, about 25–50 mm a week. Feed nitrogen every 3–4 weeks in the growing season. In the first year remove flower stalks that form. Mulch the crowns thickly in late autumn; plants are damaged below about −4 °C. Cut the buds when they reach full size but are still tightly closed.

Pests and diseases of Artichoke

White mould (Sclerotinia)

Sources

Figures checked against these sources.