(Cardoon)

What a bold, architectural perennial for the garden! Cardoon is a handsome herbaceous plant that produces huge rosettes of spiny, silvery arching leaves. In the second year this close relative of the artichoke produces tall, multi-branched stems topped with enormous thistle-like blooms of violet-blue. These appear from early to midsummer. Bees and butterflies love the blossoms of this native of the Azore Islands and Mediterranean.

Cardoon may also be enjoyed as a vegetable, though its use is...

(Artichoke, Emerald Artichoke, Globe Artichoke)

Emerald artichoke is a handsome herbaceous perennial with large green leaves without spines and buds that have a buttery flavor. Native to the Mediterranean region, artichoke is tender and often best grown as an annual in colder hardiness zones. If the flower head is not harvested as an artichoke vegetable, bees and butterflies love the flowers of this plant.

Give Emerald artichoke a rich, well-drained soil. Full to partial sun is required. They do not like cool wet winters or cold in general,...

(Artichoke, Globe Artichoke, Green Globe Artichoke)

Green Globe artichoke is a handsome herbaceous perennial with large green leaves without spines and buds that have a buttery flavor. Native to the Mediterranean region, artichoke is tender and often best grown as an annual in colder hardiness zones. If the flower head is not harvested as an artichoke vegetable, bees and butterflies love the flowers of this plant.

Give 'Green Globe' a rich, well-drained soil. Full to partial sun is required. They do not like cool wet winters or cold in general,...

(Artichoke, Globe Artichoke, Imperial Star Artichoke)

Imperial Star artichoke is a handsome herbaceous perennial with large green leaves and a sweet mild-flavored bud. This cultivar is an abundant spineless flower bud producer, and holds the buds more tightly to assist in the perfect harvest timing. Native to the Mediterranean region, artichoke is tender and often best grown as an annual in colder hardiness zones. If not harvested in bud, bees and butterflies love the open flowers of this plant.

Give Imperial Star artichoke a rich, well drained...

(Cardoon, Porto Spineless Cardoon)

Porto Spineless cardoon is a handsome herbaceous perennial with large gray-green leaves and buds without spines. Although the buds are edible and have a buttery flavor, 'Porto Spineless' was bred specifically for use as a cut flower. Native to the Mediterranean region, cardoon or artichoke is relatively winter tender and often grows only as an annual in cold hardiness zones. If the flower head is not harvested as an artichoke vegetable, bees and butterflies love the flowers. The deeply lobed, silvery...

(Artichoke, Globe Artichoke)

Artichoke is a handsome herbaceous edible perennial with large gray spined leaves and purple thistle-like flowers in autumn. Native to the Mediterranean region, artichoke is tender and often best grown as an annual in colder hardiness zones. Bees and butterflies love the flowers of this plant.

Give artichoke a rich, well drained soil. Full to partial sun is required. They do not like cool wet winters or cold in general, so a thick protective layer of mulch or evergreen boughs may be a good...

(Bermuda Grass)

Bermuda grass is a fine textured plant native to southern Asia, most likely India. However it is naturalized throughout the warm, humid, subtropical and tropical areas of the world. The small, lance-shaped leaves are usually dark green to gray green and emerge from a loose sheath folded maturing to a flat form. Bermuda grass spreads by scaly rhizomes (underground stems) and flattened stolons (above ground lateral stems). Both the rhizomes and stolons are heavily branched, root at the nodes and produce...

(Bermuda Grass)

Bermuda grass is a fine textured plant native to southern Asia. However it is naturalized throughout the warm, humid, subtropical and tropical areas of the world. The small, lance-shaped leaves are usually dark green to gray green and emerge from a loose sheath folded maturing to a flat form. Bermuda grass spreads by scaly rhizomes (underground stems) and flattened stolons (above ground lateral stems). Both the rhizomes and stolons are heavily branched, root at the nodes and produce dense stands...

(Chinese Forget-Me-Not, Summer Forget-Me-Not)

Prized for its summer-long display of azure flowers, this short-lived tender perennial from East Asia is typically grown as an annual or biennial.

Dense clumps of felted, gray-green, lance-shaped to oval leaves give rise to one-sided sprays of small, five-lobed, sky-blue flowers on calf- to knee-high stems. Flowering begins in early spring or 2 months after sowing, continuing as long as temperatures remain mild. Small, bristly, bur-like fruits follow the flowers. Self-sowing often occurs, sometimes...

(Chinese Forget-Me-Not, Summer Forget-Me-Not)

Prized for its summer-long display of azure flowers, 'Blue Shower' is a tall, floriferous, seed-grown selection of Chinese forget-me-not, a short-lived tender perennial from East Asia. It is typically grown as an annual or biennial.

Dense clumps of felted, gray-green, lance-shaped to oval leaves give rise to one-sided sprays of small, five-lobed, sky-blue flowers on knee-high stems. Flowering begins in early spring or 2 months after sowing, continuing as long as temperatures remain mild. Small,...