PJF · CC BY-SA 3.0
Jerusalem artichoke
Plant·Helianthus tuberosus
Full sun
Sun
Medium
Water
Moist soil
Drainage
Zones 3–9
Hardiness
Jerusalem artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus) is a plant. It grows best in full sun and has moderate water needs. It grows well with common bean and corn maize.
Through the year
FruitingLeafing outDormantDying back
Works well with
from wiki dataWHAT IT NEEDS
Wants full sun
Needs moderate water
Tolerates moist soil, as long as it drains well
Prefers soil pH 6–6.6
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Prefers loam, sandy loam, clay loam soil
Tolerates some soil compaction
Draws up potassium, phosphorus from deep in the soil
Adds a lot of organic matter to the soil
Partners with mycorrhizal fungi to boost nutrient uptake
WHAT IT GIVES
Gives mulch biomass (high)
Gives shade (moderate)
Provides potassium
Provides phosphorus
Attracts pollinators
HOW IT GROWS
SIZE & SPACING
Herbaceous
Height150–300 cm
Spacing60 cm (min 30 cm)
Root depthShallow
Width60–150 cm
Width figures are rough estimates, the most variable measurement in our data.
AI estimate · accuracy improves as growers contribute corrections.
HOW TO PROPAGATE
Propagate by seed, tuber division
Difficulty
Establishes in about 1 yr
Self-seeds readily on its own
Where this comes from
Parsed11 Sept 2026
ConfidenceNot recorded
Photograph PJF · CC BY-SA 3.0