Perennial tuber
How to grow Jerusalem artichokes
Helianthus tuberosus
Jerusalem artichokes are grown from tubers planted 10 to 15 cm deep between February and April, in almost any soil, in sun or light shade. They need no feeding and little water, and each plant gives 1 to 2 kg of tubers to dig from October to March. The real work is control: stems reach 2 to 3 m and need support in wind, and every tuber left behind regrows, so give them a permanent corner.
- Hardiness
- Fully hardy
- Position
- Sun to light shade
- Soil
- Almost any, even poor ground
- Ideal pH
- 6.0 to 7.5
- Water
- Low
- Feeding
- Light feeder
Sowing and planting Jerusalem artichokes
WhenPlant tubers Feb to Apr; harvest Oct to Mar
Starting off
Plant egg-sized tubers (saved or from a greengrocer) in February to April, as soon as the soil is workable; 'Fuseau' is smoother and easier to peel than the knobbly types. No seed is needed, and any tuber left in the ground regrows next year, so lift thoroughly. Cut the stems to 1.5 m in August to divert energy into tubers.
Spacing and planting
Plant tubers 30 to 45 cm apart in rows 90 cm apart, 10 to 15 cm deep; the stems reach 2 to 3 m, so earth up 15 cm in June and stake or string a row in exposed spots. Workable in a 50 litre tub or a bottomless dustbin, which is one way to stop it spreading.
Varieties worth growing
- Fuseau
- Long, smooth, pale tubers with few knobs, so far easier to scrub and peel. The variety most gardeners should start with.
- Dwarf Sunray
- Shorter at about 1.2 to 1.5 m and more likely to flower. Thin-skinned tubers that need no peeling; the best choice for a small or windy garden.
- Common (unnamed white)
- The knobbly tubers sold loose for eating or passed between allotment neighbours. Heavy cropping and vigorous, but slow to clean.
Jerusalem artichokes month by month
Timings are for central England. Allow two weeks later in the north and on cold, heavy soil.
- January
Dig tubers as needed. Set aside sound, egg-sized ones for replanting.
- February
Plant from late February if the soil is workable. Keep digging the old crop.
- March
Main planting month. Finish lifting last year's crop and fork the bed through for strays.
- April
Last planting. Pull any shoots appearing where they are not wanted.
- May
Draw soil up around the stems when they are 30 cm tall.
- June
Earth up to 15 cm and put in stakes and string on exposed sites.
- July
Water only in a long drought. Otherwise nothing to do.
- August
Cut stems back to 1.5 m to reduce wind rock.
- September
Nothing to do. Dwarf Sunray may flower.
- October
When the leaves yellow, cut stems to about 10 cm and lay them over the bed as a mulch. Start lifting.
- November
Lift as needed. On heavy soil lift the whole crop now.
- December
Lift as needed. The cut stems over the row keep the ground diggable in frost.
Feeding Jerusalem artichokes
Jerusalem artichokes need no fertiliser on ordinary garden soil. Nitrogen grows taller stems, not more tubers, so the plan below is for containers and very poor ground only.
Low, it thrives on poor soil; rich ground just gives top growth.
Feeding plan
Planting, in ordinary soil
Nothing
No fertiliser and no manure. If you have compost to spare, a thin layer on the surface after planting is enough.
Planting, on thin sand or builder's subsoil only
Fruit & Vegetable Fertiliser 4-5-6
70 g/m², the bottom of the label range, forked in. With rows 90 cm apart that is about 63 g per metre of row (70 × 0.9). Once, at planting, and nothing later.
Planting, in a tub
Fruit & Vegetable Fertiliser 4-5-6
5 g per litre of compost, the bottom of the label range: 250 g mixed through a 50 litre tub. This lasts the season.
July and August, tubs only, optional
1 g per litre of water every 3 weeks: 10 g in a 10 litre can, which does several tubs.
No fertiliser is recommended for Jerusalem artichokes in ordinary open ground. The products listed apply to containers and very poor soil only.
Signs to watch
Masses of 3 m top growth and few, small tubers
Excess nitrogen from manure
Never feed, and cut stems back in August
Yellowing lower leaves in a wet summer
Waterlogged roots, not a shortage
Plant on a ridge
Stems toppling in autumn wind
Nothing nutritional, just the height
Earth up and stake in June
Pests, diseases and problems
Holes eaten into the tubers, young shoots grazed in spring
Slugs, which feed on tubers below ground through autumn and winter
On heavy, slug-prone soil lift the crop by Christmas rather than leaving it in until March, and apply nematodes in September while the soil is warm. Damaged tubers are fine to eat once trimmed.
Stem base rots with white fluffy mould containing hard black lumps; the stem wilts and falls
Sclerotinia, a soil-borne fungus
Dig out and bin affected plants with the soil around the stem base, before the black resting bodies drop. Do not compost them, and move the patch to fresh ground with new tubers.
White powdery coating on the leaves from August
Powdery mildew on dry-rooted plants late in the season
It arrives too late to reduce the crop much. Water in a prolonged dry spell and otherwise ignore it.
Shoots coming up in paths and neighbouring beds the following year
Small tubers and broken pieces left in the ground at lifting
Fork through the bed twice at the final lift and pull every stray shoot in May while the tuber is still attached. In a small garden grow them in a sunken bottomless bin or a large tub.
Tubers soft, grey and rotting when dug in late winter
Waterlogged soil
On heavy ground plant on a ridge, and lift the whole crop in November for storing in boxes of damp sand in a cool shed.
Harvest and rotation
Harvest and storage
Lift from October after frost blackens the foliage, 30 to 35 weeks from planting, until March, digging a whole plant at a time and sifting the soil for every tuber. A plant gives 1 to 2 kg, 15 to 20 tubers. They shrivel within a week once lifted, so dig as needed, or store a few in damp sand. Keep a dozen for replanting.
Rotation and companions
Rotation: a sunflower-family tuber grown as a near-permanent patch, so no rotation; because leftovers regrow, give it a corner of its own. Use the row as a summer windbreak for runner beans, squash and salads on its lee side. Keep it away from anything it will shade.
Good to knowVigorous to the point of invasive, so confine it; the tall stems make a useful summer windbreak or screen.
Growing Jerusalem artichokes in pots
A large container is the surest way to keep Jerusalem artichokes where you put them. Use a tub of 50 litres or more, or an old dustbin with drainage holes, and plant two or three tubers 10 to 15 cm deep in a mix of garden soil and peat-free compost. The plants are top-heavy, so stand the tub out of the wind or tie the stems to a fence, and choose Dwarf Sunray if you can. Unlike plants in the ground, tubs need watering twice a week in summer. To harvest, tip the whole tub out in autumn and pick the tubers from the compost.
Jerusalem artichokes: common questions
Are Jerusalem artichokes invasive?
Yes, in the sense that any tuber or fragment left in the soil grows into a new 2 to 3 m plant the next year. They do not spread by runners or seed in the UK, so the answer is thorough lifting, pulling stray shoots in May, or growing them in a tub or a sunken bottomless bin.
When should I plant Jerusalem artichokes in the UK?
Plant tubers from late February to April, as soon as the soil is not frozen or waterlogged. March is ideal in central England. Set them 10 to 15 cm deep and 30 to 45 cm apart.
Why do Jerusalem artichokes cause wind?
The tubers store their energy as inulin, a carbohydrate humans cannot digest, so gut bacteria ferment it instead. Small portions, eating them regularly and long, slow cooking all help, and some people tolerate them much better than others.
Sources
Growing information on this page was checked against these references in November 2026. Feeding rates are Dr Forest label rates.