Cirsium oleraceum

The Cabbage thistle from C and E Europe, East into Asia, is sometimes grown as a vegetable, as both the leaves and roots are edible, though here the bold foliage and pollinator friendly creamy flowers surrounded by a ruff of jagged green and cream bracts on strong stems to 1.5m high are usually the greatest attraction. A handsome hardy perennial, flowering from July to September. Moist to wet soil in sun or part shade. The young leaves and stems are cooked and eaten as a vegetable in India and Japan. A good source of inulin.

£12.50