Artichokes not choking

[greenstubbs]

I've been growing chokers for about 10 years. My first plant I had for about 7 years and produced nicely. I removed it just to shake things up and didn't have one for a few years. I'm on my second plant that is going into it's second years. I cut it back last fall and it has regrown but I'm not geting any chokers on it and it should be full of them. The plants healthy but not very big. I've done nothing different to or with it. I'm debating on weather to just give up on it and use the room for something else? Maybe I'll wait till I really get going in the garden to decide? I'm just stumped as to what's up, ideas?

[GardenGnome]

[img]https://i1268.photobucket.com/albums/jj565/ericmgilson/2012-02-03_10-15-25_637-1.jpg[/img]

Mine are around 2 to 3 feet and I don't see the stem or chokes.
And there acouple years old. If your not pressed for space id wait.
Id wait for someone with more info on them to answer your post.
The weathers been so odd I live up above you in ca.
I don't even think my plants were like that last year.
At this time we should be getting rain and alittle snow.

[greenstubbs]

Yea, mine about that size, maybe a little bigger. They really are a beautiful plant that really doesn't take alot of work to grow. Come to think of it, it has been a goofy winter. Some of the trees are already starting to flower and there was a article in the paper that the farmers are worried that if they pop and then get our heavy rains that the harvest will be real bad. Farmers are never happy!

[GardenGnome]

Yeah id be worried to if all my money was on the line.
The people should be worried if there's no fresh fruit.
What's your garden space.
Ever hear about square foot gardening by mel bartholomew?
He tells you how to get the most of your space .
I think I saw some posts about on here.
I don't think are plants are ready to choke I think they need to get bigger.

[GardenGnome]

Idk if you keep your plants but mine are starting to choke.

[greenstubbs]

Yea, mine too, as a matter a fact I had one last weekend, a little young. I have about a dozen chokers on it. This is my second year on the plant so maybe it just had to find itself, maybe will be a later producer???? Maybe I was a little worried before I should have been, it is "The Grand Experiment"!

[klevelyn]

We planted artichokes last summer here and we have to grow them as annuls because of the cold winter. I have heard that they need a chilling period to produce chokes.

Maybe with the warm winter this year they were delayed.

[GardenGnome]

Idk aout the cold we had a mix of cold/rain/snow/sunny. And ca. Grows them. It was a week of rain then a week of sun. Man weed were growing like they were on crack. Mine is about the size of a golf ball. The plants atleast 4 years old.

[greenstubbs]

Mine is about the size of a golf ball. The plants atleast 4 years old.

Mine are the size of a large fist.

[GardenGnome]

Ill have to go look and see how many I have. I just saw it walking by the plant.

[gumbo2176]

I've picked about 1 dozen off my plants and have several more maturing now. This is their second year growing and they over-wintered because of our mild winter this year.

I had 4 plants I put out last spring and 3 of them died last year. The one that survived sent out 2 side shoots early last fall and the production of these plants has me bewildered, but happy. All the chokes I've picked have been about the size of a large navel orange. The plants themselves are at least 5 ft. tall and quite bushy. Everyone that has seen them before they started putting out chokes asks what that plant is since many folks have no idea what a choke plant looks like. Heck, I'd grow them just for the wow value of the plant.

[gumbo2176]

I've picked about 1 dozen off my plants and have several more maturing now. This is their second year growing and they over-wintered because of our mild winter this year.

I had 4 plants I put out last spring and 3 of them died last year. The one that survived sent out 2 side shoots early last fall and the production of these plants has me bewildered, but happy. All the chokes I've picked have been about the size of a large navel orange. The plants themselves are at least 5 ft. tall and quite bushy. Everyone that has seen them before they started putting out chokes asks what that plant is since many folks have no idea what a choke plant looks like. Heck, I'd grow them just for the wow value of the plant.

[greenstubbs]

And they also have/are beautiful flowers!!!