If you ask me, globe artichokes can be a little intimidating. Visually, they're statuesque and striking. And, while they have a reputation as a culinary delicacy, to the novice it can be hard to tell how they should be eaten at all.

But despite all of this, artichokes are actually a very easy plant to grow. Possibly that's to make up for the fact they do require a bit of work to cook...and eat!

So, if you've ever wondered about growing artichokes I can tell you, wonder no more - just get planting! Grab your artichoke seedlings from our online store or head to your local supermarket, Bunnings, or The Warehouse.

Because artichokes (not to be confused with Jerusalem artichoke, which are nothing at all like globe artichokes) are not particular about where they grow, you can choose anywhere in the vegetable garden to plant. Alternatively, why not use that intimidating visual appearance to your advantage and plant them with your flowers. I suggest growing them in the background as they can reach around 2m tall.

When you've found the right spot, plant each artichoke about 50-100cm apart from the next. Because we're coming into summer it pays to keep an eye on how dry they get and try to keep them watered regularly. It's also a good idea to apply a mulch to help keep the soil consistently moist.

In around 20-24 weeks you can expect to see your first flower buds. It's the inner petals and the base of the bud that is eaten. And it's important, if you want to eat them, to harvest the buds while the petals are still tightly wrapped. This way the hairy choke inside (which is scraped out to reveal the 'heart' of the artichoke) won't have developed too much. This heart is where all the flavour of the plant is.

The first head will be the biggest and then smaller heads will develop off this. Harvest the heads by cutting just below the bud and include a small amount of stem. If you decide not to harvest and eat your artichoke, the flowers will develop into giant thistle-like seed heads.

See...not so intimidating after all.