Acanthus mollis Reut, Israel

In 2011, while Israeli nurseryman Moti Kopilovitch was visiting and discussing our acanthus selections, we explained that most Acanthus mollis we tried did not survive our hot, humid summers. Moti was kind enough to share seed of a form of bear's breech that thrives in Israel's hot, Zone 10-11 climate, and we are thrilled to share the plants with you. We planted several of this Acanthus mollis in the ground to watch, so we'll all grow them for the first time together. Acanthus mollis makes a 2' tall x 3' wide clump of broad, glossy-green, deeply indented leaves that goes into a midsummer lull but kicks into high gear with the return of cooler nights. The clumps are topped with 4' tall spikes of spiny purple and white flowers. Bear's breech is propagated from root cuttings, so if you dig around a mature acanthus, you will create cuttings. Acanthus mollis was named as one of the top 200 plants of the last 200 years by the Royal Horticultural Society...quite an honor.