Slugs and Salal: Veggies - Globe Artichokes

GLOBE ARTICHOKE

The Globe Artichoke (Cynara scolymus, French artichoke), the glamor queen among artichokes, is a large thistle-like perennial plant whose ancestors are natives of the Mediterranean region and the Canary Islands. The globe artichoke is thought to be an offshoot type derived from one of these ancestors, the cardoon (Cynara cardunculus), which is grown for its leaf stalks and midribs. The plants are tied and blanched in the same way as celery.

Globe artichoke plants would not be at all out of place in the perennial flower garden. This is a highly ornamental member of the daisy family with deeply divided, arching, silvery green leaves that grow up to three feet long and are somewhat spiny. The plants grow about five feet tall, and bear huge thistle-like purple flowers that dry well and are dramatic in everlasting arrangements.

The fat, globe-like flowerbuds for which the plant was given its common name are made up of numerous scales with fleshy bases and a fleshy receptable or "heart". These edible parts have for centuries been the object of food lovers' passionate devotion.

Globe artichoke growing along the shoreline at Sooke Harbour House on Vancouver Island.

CULTURE | HARVEST AND USE

The name Cynara is from the Green kyon, meaning dog. The reference is to the sharp tips, like dogs' teeth, of the flowerbud scales, which open to become spiny bracts around the base of the flowers. The descriptive name scolymus, from the Greek skolus for thorn, refers to the spininess of the plant.

The epicurean delights of the globe artichoke were well known to the ancient Greeks and Romans. Artichokes preserved in spiced honey were an exclusive palate pleaser for Roman patricians. The Roman historian Pliny, who seems to have been of a more spartan and utilitarian mind in the matter of food, wrote of the globe artichoke disparagingly, calling it a thistle. He tells of plots of land around Carthage which produced a huge yearly income from globe artichoke culture -- "such being the way in which we make the monstrous productions of the earth subservient to our gluttonous appetites."

French gourmands readily incorporated the globe artichoke into their galaxy of culinary stars, and France became a major commercial producer. Early colonists brought globe artichokes to the New World, where they have graced fashionable dinner tables ever since. Commercial plantings thrive in coastal areas of the American Northwest.

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CULTURE

Though they take a fair amount of space, globe artichoke plants are not difficult to grow. Young plants can sometimes be purchased at local garden centres in the spring. I've grown all of my plants from seed started indoors in individual peat or plastic pots three or four inches wide, during February or early March. The transplants need six to eight weeks from seeding to size up nicely before setting them outside.

A site destined to grow globe artichokes needs to be in full sun. The soil should be prepared well, for it's only in a humus-rich, fertile, well-drained but consistently moist soil that the plants will be at their beautiful best and able to yield tender, succulent flowerbuds.

Dig the ground deeply and mix in compost or composted manure along with a handful of a balanced dry fertilizer scattered over each square yard. Space the transplants 30 inches apart, firming them in well. Keep the plants well watered as they settle in. With warm, dry weather I mulch around the plants with compost to help conserve moisture and to further fatten the soil. Seaweed is a soil conditioner and fertilizer that suits globe artichokes, which are maritime plants.

First-year plants will yield usable flowerbuds in August and September. In subsequent years production of edible heads will begin in late spring or early summer and continue through early autumn if the planting is well nourished and adequately watered. The first, "king" flowerhead will be much larger than any later ones.

Among seed-grown plants you may find some poor and unproductive off-types. Remove these after harvesting is over, and replace them in replenished soil the following spring using side shoots growing next to the main stem of your best plants.

Regenerating older plants

Globe artichokes are not long-lived perennials. Their productivity cycle is rather like that of the strawberry. The plants spend their first year gathering steam for super crops during their second, third and sometimes fourth years before they begin losing their vigor. In a planting's third year it's a good idea to begin a spring progam of replacing some of the oldest plants. Remove offset shoots from productive parent plants with a sharp knife when the shoots are about six inches long. Firm the young plants in well and keep them well watered.

There is an easy way of utilizing old plants before they are dug up. Cut them down after the last heads are gathered and give the plant frequent soakings to encourage fresh new growth. When growth is about 24 inches high gather the stems and leaves together and tie them in a close bundle for blanching. Mound soil around them as for celery. The stems will resemble cardoons in appearance and flavor, and can be cooked and served in the same way as celery.

Overwintering

In cold coastal microclimates the globe artichoke can be grown as an annual, for a late summer and early autumn harvest period. But even in the mildest regions the cold and wet of winter can make successful overwintering of the plants difficult. In this way they are very like carnations and chrysanthemums, which tend to rot in wet winter conditions. That is why a light, sandy soil that drains rapidly is essential.

To protect plant crowns over the winter, cut the plants down after the first hard frost, leaving a short stub on the main stalk. Clean the area of debris and if your soil is sandy and open-textured, mound soil from another part of the garden around the stalk and over the roots. If your garden's soil is heavy, or if you want to provide additonal protection, lay some loose, non-compacting material over the plant crowns. Old, dry brushwood and loose straw or dried bracken are some likely materials. It is essential to choose a covering that does not mat down to exclude air. Otherwise, the crowns will become sodden and rot into mush. Remove the covering in March, cultivate around the plants, and give them a generous dressing of compost and/or composted manure.

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HARVEST AND USE

Harvest the artichokes when the large flowerbuds are plump and still green, with the scales folded well against each other. Left too long, the scales will start opening and drying as a purple thistle-like flower develops. To maintain the shapeliness of my plants I harvest artichokes by removing the entire flowerstem at its base. Then over a compost pile I cut the stout stem into pieces, leaving about a two-inch flat-bottomed stub beneath the flowerhead. Using kitchen scissors I snip off the sharp tips from the scales.

My preferred method of cooking globe artichokes is to steam them tender -- in one of my steamer pots, or stem-end down in a covered pot with a shallow layer of water. I add lemon juice to the water in both methods to prevent discoloration and enhance flavour and tenderness in the artichoke flesh.

When an outer scale pulls away easily and the half-moon of flesh at its base has softened enough to slip away easily when bitten, the head is ready to serve. The cooking usually takes 20 to 30 minutes.

My usual way of serving globe artichokes is to place the head on a plate beside a little custard cup holding melted butter mixed with fresh lemon juice and a pinch of salt. I provide a dish at the centre of the table for the discarded scales. A scale is removed, dipped in the lemon butter, and relieved of its fleshy parts with the teeth. When the last scale is removed there is a fuzzy covering to be scraped or cut off the artichoke heart. This delectable treat is sliced into pieces for dipping into the lemon butter.

More recently I've been experimenting with various vinaigrette sauces to serve with artichoke and have found that olive oil spiced with lime or lemon juice, salt, and pressed garlic or shallot makes a very palatable dip for the scales. Sometimes I'll add a few finely chopped black olives. The nice thing about either sauce is that leftovers can be used as a spread on slices of toasted baguette or as a dip for chunks of focaccia or Italian bread. Other options for serving with artichoke are hollandaise sauce and mayonnaise flavored with mustard. To present French artichoke as an appetizer, cook the head tender and twist off all the usable leaves. Arrange them in a circular pattern on a plate around a bowl of dipping sauce.

Some plants produce numerous small heads, which can be steamed tender and eaten whole if they are harvested early, when they are no larger than a small egg. Serve these delicacies topped with lemon butter, an oil and lemon vinaigrette or other sauce. Mmmm! A true Pacific Northwest delicacy.

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