Globe Artichoke

Globe Artichoke  (Cynara)

Globe Artichoke (Cynara) is a small genus of plants related to Thistles. The most well-known species are Cynara cardunculus (Cardoon) and Cynara scolymus (Artichoke). The Cardoon is well hardy and grows much taller than Artichoke. Artichoke is not fully hardy with us. With Cardoon, it is the leaf stems which are eaten and with Artichoke it is the un-ripe flower buds. Globe Artichoke is a nice stately plant and good as a specimen in a large border. They do require quite some space. Unfortunately, they are often quite short-lived.