Pages

4.05.2024

Spring Seedlings - Artichokes

 

I truly have a love/hate relationship with seed starting. There's lots that I can get to grow... then there's others which I just kill off every single time. I follow directions and I follow recommendations and then what I really want to live... still doesn't. It can be really frustrating.

I'm absolutely awesome at over-watering seedlings. I get too invested in making sure that the soil is damp or moist and then I accidentally water too much and then I need a fan to dry everything out and then my mistakes just rinse and repeat.

So when my artichokes actually germinated... I WAS ECSTATIC. And then I have no idea how to grow them so I've been on a research kick for awhile now. 

Artichokes need a cold vernalization period because they are biennial - to grow from seed you need to put them outside after they have 2-4 leaves in temps that are under 50 degrees for at least 10 days. 

I'm on Day 3.

I first saw flowering artichokes in Colorado last summer, then my favorite gardener was growing artichokes in her garden. I thought it was a sign that I should experiment!

So here we go! I'm going to put 2-3 out front where they can be seen from the street, then I'll put 2-3 in the backyard where I can keep a closer eye on their growing and development. I've never cooked with them before either, so I have a couple recipes in mind. We shall see what happens!


No comments: