Cynara cardunculus
Perennial Cardoon
Item #: 4949
Zones: 7b to 9b
Dormancy: Summer
Height: 36" tall
Origin: Morocco
Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)
The famed cardoon, aka Cynara cardunculus, makes a dramatic winter evergreen statement in the sunny perennial border with its 3-4' long, arching, ghost-like, jagged, soft-grey foliage. Once the 4' wide drought-loving clumps are established, they are topped with 6' tall stalks of blue-violet, thistle-like flowers in late summer. After flowering, cardoons die to the ground for a month-long rest before re-sprouting. For a striking, bold-textured accent plant, you can't beat cardoon! Cardoon, which sounds more like a mythical place in Scotland than a plant, was chosen by the Royal Horticultural Society as one of the top 200 plants of the last 200 years. Cynara cardunculus is actually an ornamental form of the edible artichoke. Best results will be found in well-drained soils that stay on the dry side in winter.
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Other Attributes
Genus: Cynara
Flower Color: Blue , Purple/Lavender
Leaf Color: Green , Silver/Grey
Bloom Time: Summer
Container Role: Thrillers
Garden Themes: Cottage Garden Plants , Night Gardens , Southwest Garden Plants , White Garden
Other: Butterfly Attracting Plants , Edimentals , Cut Flower Plants , Deer Resistant Plants , Drought Tolerant Plants , Giant Plants , Pollinator Plants , Medicinal Plants , Ornamental Seed or Fruit , Rabbit Resistant Plants , Tropical Looking Plants , Xeriscaping Plants , Colored Foliage