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By Emmy Ulmschneider and Debbie Roland, Master Gardeners
Previously, we have written about the importance of sunflowers in a native garden. If you can only plant one plant, plant a sunflower as you get so much value in one plant: beauty, habitat value, and…. math education! Sunflowers have two flower types, disc and ray flowers. The spiral pattern one sees in the disc flowers is an example of a Fibonacci series and a beautiful math lesson for us all. For more information on sunflowers and math: https://www.fs.usda.gov/wildflowers/plant-of-the-week/helianthus_annuus.shtml
There are roughly fifty species of native sunflowers across North America and dozens more cultivars and nativars. Our 2021 article focused on Maximillan Sunflower, Helianthus maximiliani, and the rich indigenous history sunflowers have through producing food, dye, and fiber. https://www.westtexasgardening.org/post/maximillian-s-sunflower
Beside the seeds and oil, Maximilian Sunflower has an edible underground root tuber. As I was cutting back these sunflowers in my chicken yard, I unearthed these tubers, and I could see that my chickens were enjoying this tasty treat as well! Although I have never eaten the Maximillan Sunflower tuber, I do grow and eat the root tuber from a related plant, another native sunflower, Jerusalem Artichoke or Helianthus tuberosus. Both sunflowers, although not native to West Texas, are native to east Texas. Maximillan Sunflower is a tall grass prairie native; Jerusalem Artichoke on the other hand, was originally found along woodland borders east of us. Today, they have been spread or naturalized around the United States and can be found from coast to coast. Both are easily grown in West Texas with minimal additional watering. But as a note of caution, Jerusalem Artichoke can spread aggressively and become a garden thug! Although both plants provide food and shelter in a native urban habitat, in my yard, Maximillan Sunflower has more habitat value hosting a wide variety of birds and insects eating seeds or gathering pollen or nectar. Jerusalem Artichoke, once cultivated by Native Americans, has more value as a culinary food but both of their tubers are edible.
Recipes for the Jerusalem Artichoke tuber as a culinary food are available and you can readily buy the tubers to grow or eat. I sampled them first sharing a foraged meal with Euell Gibbons and he wrote about Jerusalem Artichoke in Stalking the Wild Asparagus. Try them raw in a salad, baked in a casserole, roasted or in a soup. There are even dessert recipes! Both tubers are a good source of iron, potassium, thiamin, and inulin. Although inulin supports gut health by stimulating the growth of beneficial bacteria, it can disturb some people’s digestive process by causing excess gas. So, try a small amount first, and always consult with your primary care physician first.
We are nearing the end of the Jerusalem Artichoke tuber harvest season which is November to March. But that means that you are at the beginning of the spring planting window. You still have time to order tubers or root stock for planting as well as sample the last of the commercial tuber harvest!
If you have questions, call the AgriLife office in Odessa at 498-4071 or in Midland at 686-4700. Additional information, and our blog for access to past articles, is available at westtexasgardening.org. Click on “Resources”.
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