Cardoon Seeds

Discover a distinctive Mediterranean garden crop with cardoon seeds from David's Garden Seeds®. A close relative of the globe artichoke, cardoon is cultivated for its broad, artichoke-flavored leaf stalks rather than its flower buds. Its large, silvery-green leaves also create a dramatic presence in an ornamental or edible garden.

Give This Stately Crop Room to Grow

• Plan for a large plant: Choose a sunny location and allow the spacing recommended for the variety. Cardoon needs room for its substantial foliage.
• Prepare a well-drained bed: Work compost into suitable garden soil and avoid locations that stay waterlogged.
• Follow local planting timing: Match sowing and transplanting dates to your climate and the variety's growing instructions. Harden off indoor-grown seedlings before transplanting.
• Maintain steady growth: Water consistently during dry periods and mulch to help conserve soil moisture.

Blanch Stalks Before Harvest

For culinary use, blanching means shielding the developing inner stalks from light before harvest to encourage tenderness and reduce bitterness. Follow the variety's directions for timing and technique, keeping the growing heart from staying excessively wet. Wear gloves when handling plants with prickly leaves or stalks.

Prepare Cardoon for the Kitchen

Trim away leaves and any prickles, remove tough strings as needed and cook the prepared stalks until tender. Cardoon is traditionally enjoyed braised, baked in gratins or added to savory dishes where its artichoke-like flavor can shine. Keep trimmed stalks in acidulated water during preparation to help limit browning.

A Bold Ornamental Accent

Plants allowed to flower can produce large purple, thistle-like blooms above their sculptural foliage. Remove unwanted flower heads before seed develops to help control self-seeding.

Plan a Place for Cardoon

Make room for Mediterranean flavor and striking foliage in your next garden plan.

Grow something beautiful. Grow something delicious. Grow with David's Garden Seeds®.