Stachys affinis, grown mainly for its crisp, knobbly tubers (crosne) that can be eaten raw, pickled or cooked. Plant it as tubers in spring and harvest the tubers in late autumn through winter.
Family
Lamiaceae (Mint family)
Grows as
Perennial
Light
Full sun, Part shade
Water
Keep soil evenly moist through summer; water well during dry spells.
Soil
Fertile, well-drained loam or garden soil.
Temperature
10–25 °C; hardy to about -15 °C, tubers can stay in the ground through winter when not frozen.
How easy
Easy
Safety
Not known to be toxic
Edible
Yes, some parts
Native range
China to N. Myanmar
Climate
temperate
About
Stachys affinis, commonly called crosne, Chinese artichoke, Japanese artichoke, knotroot, or artichoke betony, is a perennial herbaceous plant of the family Lamiaceae, originating from China. Its rhizome is a root vegetable that can be eaten raw, pickled, dried or cooked.
How to grow it
S. affinis is planted as a bulb (vegetative) in spring (March–May). Multiple bulbs are planted 5 to 8 cm (2 to 3+1⁄8 in) deep into a hole of dimensions 30 by 30 cm (12 by 12 in). The plant can achieve a height of 30 cm (12 in). Weeding is necessary but it is important not to damage the root system. A sufficient water supply during summer is important.
Harvest is from November to March. It is important that the soil is not frozen when harvesting.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Stachys affinis by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.