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Re: Artichokes

Square Foot Gardening List - http://www.flinet.com/~gallus/sqft.html

I have the same question about sqft spacing for artichokes.  I will be
setting mine out next week and was planning to make new beds 40" X 80 "
(about 1m X 2m) and put 3 plants spaced at 27" in a line at the center of
the bed.  But it isn't firm and I would also like to hear from somebody who
has grown the artichokes sqft.

It has been over 20 years since I grew artichokes and this is my first
experiment with seeds.  Based on what I have learned so far,  I would
recommend starting the seeds in deep,  >= 3-inch pots.  The seedlings became
large very rapidly and had a long radicle that was brittle and vulnerable to
breaking when transplanted.  I started mine from seeds in 1-inch square
cells in plug trays about 1-1/2 inches deep on New Years Day along with
tomatoes.  Artichoke germination was nearly 100 percent within one week with
no special treatment - just covered the tray with black plastic until the
seeds started to sprout and the usual fluorescent shop lights for heat and
light.  I moved the chokes to 4-inch pots 10 days later which was when I
broke some of the radicles but it didn't seem to harm the seedlings.  The
plants have been outdoors in full sun ever since and covered at night with a
frost blanket whenever the temperature threatened to drop below 40 deg (had
several nights in the high 20s).  Some of the leaves are now 8-inches long
but the root system is not as extensive as one might expect from the size of
the plant.  I started both Globe and Imperial Star and the plants look
alike.  The only difference I can see now between the two varieties is the
label on the pot.   As  I understand it, Imperial Star was developed to be
an annual in cooler climates but should also be a perennial in our low
desert.

There is a copy of the old Thompson & Morgan Seed Starting Database at
http://www.backyardgardener.com/tm.html that sqfters might find useful.

Olin

 Doreen Howard wrote:
Subject: Artichokes


>....I'm
>going to start Imperial artichoke seeds under lights this weekend.  They
>need
>about 16 weeks of growth before setting out, I understand.  My questions
>are:
>1.  Has anyone grown artichokes in a square foot bed?  If so, what is the
>spacing?
>2.  How do you start the seeds?  Do they need bottom heat?  I understand
>that
>they like chill and require at least two weeks of under 50F weather in
order
>to
>set flower buds.  Do you need to keep the seedlings this cool, too?
>
>TIA
>Doreen Howard
>Zone 5b--Central Illinois
>
>
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