Growing Cardoon

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26 Dec 19 colleen (USA - Zone 10b climate)
Can cardoons be grown in a spot that receives afternoon shade? If so, do I still need to blanch the stems?
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14 Oct 21 Leslie Trail (USA - Zone 6b climate)
yes you can grow them in the shade. I have had several varieties and some like the shade more than others. You should still blanch the cardoon though. If you do not blanch it you can still use it... I soak my trimmed, cleaned and chopped cardoons in water with vinegar. Then drain and put in a pot with water and a little salt. Then put it on the stove on high until just before it boils. Remove from heat and rinse. After that cook it or can it. This will remove most of the bitter. It tastes great but I imagine I am loosing some of the flavor when I do this. This is especially handy when I am going to harvest them in the middle of the summer since wrapping then in the heat seems to cause a lot of damage to the stocks. Its best to wrap and harvest in the spring or the fall.
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