Is it possible to eat cardoons?

[cottage garden]

Does anyone know if it is possible to eat cardoons? I have several 8-10foot plants growing with smaller heads than artichokes.

[Flummery]

Yes. However, I'm not tempted! They look too much like massive celery and I hate celery. No doubt someone here has grown them to eat and will fill you in.

[Snadger]

I am trying to grow cardoons for to blanch the stems for eating!

You can eat the artichoke type heads though!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cardoon

I'm also giving Seakale a try this year for blanching.

[SueA]

I never knew you could eat cardoons Snadger. How are you blanching them? The link you gave says you can wrap them or bury them in earth. Does that mean like earthing up potatoes? How would you do that when they're 6ft up in the air? I've never grown them myself as I don't have the room but they look really architectural & being edible must be a bonus.

[HeyWayne]

Do you mean like Bugs Buddy, and Mickey Moude?

[Snadger]

I never knew you could eat cardoons Snadger. How are you blanching them? The link you gave says you can wrap them or bury them in earth. Does that mean like earthing up potatoes? How would you do that when they're 6ft up in the air? I've never grown them myself as I don't have the room but they look really architectural & being edible must be a bonus.

Here's another link with a few piccies SueA!

http://www.diynetwork.com/diy/gr_fru...720399,00.html

I saw this originally on the Victorian Kitchen Garden DVD and thought I would give it a try! I sowed the seeds in the spring and because it is a perrrenial I thought I would give it the first year to establish before blanching the second year. I have a big problem with thistles on my plot and I will have to check tomorrow whether I've pulled some out, thinking they were thistles If I can rescue one, that will do me!

PS Just ignore the first bit on the link about horseradish (which I'm also trying btw!)

[SueA]

Thanks Snadger, I bet mine would rot under the wrapping though if I tried it! Do you just eat it raw like you can celery or do you have to cook it? The horseradish sounds like a better bet for me as it says nothing really eats it as it's too hot for most pests. I thought about horseradish last year in tubs & asked about it on here but didn't get round to trying it.Not sure about eating cardoon heads though as it always sounds very fiddly when people describe how you should prepare & eat artichoke heads.

[vertangie]

You can get the Kitchen Garden DVD on lovefilm and they have a free trial.

They put cardoons under terracotta blanching pots (upside down plant pots with lids) and ate the tender white shoots much like asparagus.

As for horseradish a friend of mine had a load in the ground and moved house and couldn't take it so I transplanted it into a big pit (52" wide by around 50" deep) it looked like it wasn't going to make it and the shot up new sprouts after about 2 weeks, it's now doing great. It's leaves have a few holes in it but I think the roots are fine. I have to find out when to harvest it as we love horseradish in this house (try blittzing some up with smoked mackerel and a bit of cream, delish as a pate and IMO great inside cheese on toast)

[Snadger]

You can get the Kitchen Garden DVD on lovefilm and they have a free trial.

They put cardoons under terracotta blanching pots (upside down plant pots with lids) and ate the tender white shoots much like asparagus.

I thought that was the SeaKale blanching method? I have some Seakale growing and was going to try blanching it with my version of a posh terracotta pot, a dustbin!
Seem to remember the cardoons were wrapped with a straw blanket?

Must have another viewing of the Victorian kitchen Garden some time to re-aquaint myself......now where the heck did I put the CD's????

[cottage garden]

Mmm...I'm amazed..I've been ignoring these huge plants for years and I could have been harvesting them..

The cardoons I have now, have just flowered and are now up to about 9 feet tall. I think I will wait till they sprout again next year and try blanching the stems..

All good advice, thank you