448 The Principles of Vegetable -Gardening 



are very fond of the artichoke, and if they are turned 

 into the field they will soon destroy the plant, if it 

 becomes weedy. As a cultivated crop, the artichoke is 

 nearly always placed in some remote or little used 

 corner, in order that it may not encroach on the culti- 

 vated areas. When once planted, it will take care of 

 itself; but it will produce more freely of tubers if the 

 roots are broken and divided now and then, as they are 

 by the customary digging of the tubers. The plant is 

 perfectly hardy. It is native to the northern parts of 

 the United States and parts of Canada. It was cul- 

 tivated by the Indians (see Gray & Trumbull, Amer. 

 Journ. Sci. 25, p. 244). In the Old World the plant 

 seems to be more prized than here as a garden crop, and 

 there are improved strains of it. In this country there 

 are no named varieties that are generally known. The 

 plant belongs to the sunflower genus, being known to 

 botanists as Helianthus tuberosus. 



The true or globe artichoke is a strong -growing, up- 

 right perennial, with large woolly divided leaves. The 

 plants grow 4 or 5 feet high. They should be planted 

 3 to 5 feet apart each way. The plants are propagated 

 either by seeds or by suckers from the root. The seeds 

 do not reproduce the variety, however, and are therefore 

 not to be recommended if one desires the best strains. 

 Seeds may be sown where the plants are to stand, and the 

 second year the plants may be expected to produce edi- 

 ble heads. Seedlings started early in a hotbed may give 

 edible heads the same year, but they must be transplanted 

 with much care. Suckers are freely produced about the 

 crown of the plant, and these are chiefly used in the Old 



