Earth pear - so in the common people called Jerusalem artichoke, it is very useful for our body. It is grown as a medicinal raw material for the treatment of gastritis , ulcers, diabetes, and as a vegetable for vitamin salads. You need to know when to collect Jerusalem artichoke and how to properly store the crop, so that the plant has not lost its properties.
When to clean Jerusalem artichoke?
Terms of harvesting an earthen pear do not have a clear time frame, because the plant can withstand even great frosts. But to store root crops in the land is still not worth it, because in winter it is not possible to dig them. It is better to mow the tops in October-November (depending on the locality) and begin digging out in a week.
Part of the tubers, if they are used as animal feed, can be left in the ground, and dig as necessary if the snow cover lies closer to winter.
How to store Jerusalem artichoke in the winter in a cellar?
The easiest way to store tubers in the basement. To do this, immediately after harvesting, they are placed in boxes with sand or wet sawdust and lowered into a cellar. The temperature there should be quite low - from + 1 ° C to + 4 ° C.
If you collected a lot of harvest, then you can save it in the so-called burts. To do this, the topinambur layers are poured onto the ground, which are poured over with sand and are transferred by ruberoid. From above everything is warmed by an earthen mound. In winter, as necessary, you can get fresh tubers and eat them.
How to store Jerusalem artichoke in an apartment?
Unfortunately, the inhabitants of the cities were not lucky with the cellars, and therefore they keep the Jerusalem artichoke in the apartment. It is best to do this on a relatively cool balcony, where the temperature does not exceed + 4 ° C. But small frosts root crops are not terrible - after defrosting it does not lose its qualities.
To store Jerusalem artichoke on the balcony you will need bags with wet sawdust or sand. Moisture will protect the crop from drying and ensure a proper microclimate. It is important that the bags with tubers do not get direct sunlight, since with a slight increase in temperature the ground pear will again start to grow.