second cull

when i got to campus this morning i found what i had expected...more jerusalem artichokes up and running in my bed..and one that had either escaped or was the result of a tuber i left behind last week...i had planned to plant maize there this weekend however the weather has cooled so i put that off and simply did more work on clearing the bed...

one reason it is so difficult to clear jerusalem artichokes is that they don't just set tubers at the root ball...the radiate out rhizomes horizontally and vertically...this tuber i dug out was almost a foot deep..it would have taken some time for the plant to break surface but it would eventually have popped up...

i found an earth worm and sixty-five more tubers...

i turned the entire bed again as a disruptive measure and will, hopefully, be back next week to do a third cull and establish the maize hills so the "two of the three sisters" ( i seem to have no affinity for growing squash...maize and beans will be the duo ) project can get started