What are these plants...

...that tower over us at 10 to 12 feet tall, and fill up half of a 20 foot bed?  They are Jerusalem artichokes (Helianthus tuberosus), commonly known as sunchokes.  I am growing them at the request of family members who fell in love with the delicate flavor of this root vegetable when traveling in California.  It's a species of sunflower native to the eastern part of our country.  The tuber should be ready to harvest next summer and, in the meantime, I shall have to content myself to wait for the blooms that should appear before the frost!