Jerusalem Artichoke: Species of sunflower native to eastern North America (for the root vegetable use Q55706475)

The Jerusalem artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus), also called sunroot, sunchoke, earth apple or topinambour, is a species of sunflower native to eastern North America, and found from eastern Canada and Maine west to North Dakota, and south to northern Florida and Texas.

It is also cultivated widely across the temperate zone for its tuber, which is used as a root vegetable.

Jerusalem artichoke
Jerusalem Artichoke: Description, Uses, Pyramid scheme
Stem with flowers
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
(unranked):
(unranked):
(unranked):
Order:
Family:
Tribe:
Genus:
Species:
H. tuberosus
Binomial name
Helianthus tuberosus

Description

The herbaceous plant is perennial. It can reach heights of up to 3 metres (9.8 ft). The leaves are oval, and grow to 7 centimetres (2.8 in) to 10 centimetres (3.9 in) wide, and 10 centimetres (3.9 in) to 25 centimetres (9.8 in) long. The plant has been imported to Europe, and it is seen as an invasive species - few animals eat it, and it will take away the space of other plants. This means that often, there is uncontrolled growth.

Uses

The plant has been used to make spirits and sugar. It is a food plant for animals such as horses and pigs. People who suffer from diabetes often use it: Up to sixteen percent of the plant is made of the polysaccharide inulin.

Pyramid scheme

In the 1980s, the Jerusalem artichoke also gained some notoriety when its seeds were planted by midwestern US farmers at the prodding of an agricultural pyramid scheme. There was little market for the tuber in that part of the US at the time, but farmers were assured it would soon appear on the commodity market. The only profits were realized by the initial distributors and the first few levels of farmers (who sold their seeds to other levels of the pyramid). As a result, many of the farms that had planted large quantities of the crop were ruined.

References

Tags:

Jerusalem Artichoke DescriptionJerusalem Artichoke UsesJerusalem Artichoke Pyramid schemeJerusalem Artichoke

🔥 Trending searches on Wiki Simple English:

List of U.S. state capitalsFeijoaDakota FanningGordon CormierJosh HawleySwitzerlandThe Pirate BayDonald TrumpGeorgia (U.S. state)German languageCamel toeProphets of IslamBaguioWinterDonald SutherlandJulian AssangeFelchingThe Haunted House (anime)List of Slipknot band membersList of U.S. state mottosPorcelainAbaloneList of cities in EgyptEnvironmentList of U.S. states and territories by areaList of cities in FranceBernie SandersHeckler & Koch G3Paige (wrestler)TamerlaneUnited Kingdom17 (number)PadmavatiOral sexAmeesha PatelBrandon ScottMichael JacksonSexual intercourseJoseph StalinBuying Beverly HillsCatList of best-selling albums worldwideGreeceMandarin ChineseSquash (plant)50 CentMetric tonNoli de CastroMountain DewFoot (unit)Deaths in November 2020Sardar Vallabhbhai PatelLeBron JamesDeaths in 2024Alexia UmanskyList of cities in Costa RicaRobert F. Kennedy Jr.Scotty Doesn't KnowBeyoncé1337xSchoolLina MedinaSamaelReligionVaginaConrad Hilton III21st centuryPlayStation 2MayEnglandMahatma GandhiThierry HenryFlowerKazakhstan🡆 More