Crop type: Globe artichokes
Cynara cardunculus (Scolymus Group) 'Purple Globe'
Common name: globe artichoke 'Purple Globe'
Crop slug: globe-artichokes
This Allotment Pro editorial draft summarises the cited RHS cultivar profile.RHS cultivar profile
1 - Overview
'Purple Globe' is a tall architectural globe-artichoke perennial with grey-green foliage and edible fleshy flower buds enclosed by hard purple scales. Its strongly coloured buds make an ornamental addition to a vegetable plot or flower border, while the parent guide describes the cooked hearts as having a pleasant nutty flavour.
Unharvested buds open into large purple thistle-like flowers during summer and autumn, supplying nectar and pollen to insects. The upright plant can reach about 1.8m tall, so it needs a sheltered sunny position and generous space.
2 - Size
- Ultimate height
- 1.5–2.5m
- Ultimate spread
- 0.5–1m
- Time to ultimate size
- 2–5 years
3 - Growing conditions
- Suitable soils
- Chalk, loam and sand
- Moisture
- Well-drained
- Soil pH
- Acid, alkaline or neutral
4 - Position and hardiness
- Light
- Full sun
- Aspect
- South-facing or west-facing
- Exposure
- Sheltered
- Hardiness
- H4 — hardy through most of the UK, tolerating the RHS band of about -10 to -5°C; provide a dry protective mulch in colder winters and northern areas
5 - Colour and seasonal interest
| Season | Flowers | Foliage | Fruit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | Green | Grey and silver | — |
| Summer | Purple and green | Grey and silver | — |
| Autumn | Purple and green | Grey and silver | — |
| Winter | — | — | — |
Purple is the essential crop identifier: the edible unopened buds have hard purple scales, and mature flower heads are also purple.
6 - Botanical details
- Family
- Asteraceae
- Native to Great Britain and Ireland
- No
- Habit
- Columnar upright
- Name status
- Unresolved
Genus
Cynara species are robust, thistle-like plants with grey-hairy, pinnately lobed foliage and rounded purple flower heads. Globe artichokes have been selected for the fleshy unopened buds used as a vegetable.
7 - How to grow
Cultivation
Grow 'Purple Globe' in fertile, freely drained soil in full sun and shelter the tall stems from strong winds. Its H4 rating makes winter crown protection important in cold or northern districts; use a dry insulating mulch such as bark or straw.
Follow the parent globe-artichoke guide for sowing, wide spacing, removing first-year buds, watering, clump renewal and harvesting tightly closed purple buds.
Propagation
Propagate by seed. Once a well-coloured productive plant is established, division or offsets can preserve that exact cultivar identity.
Suggested locations
- Architectural planting
- Cottage and informal gardens
- Mediterranean-style planting
- Flower borders and beds
Pruning
After cropping is complete, cut down flowered stems and old foliage in autumn. Spent foliage may help insulate the crown over winter.
Pests
The profile lists slugs, snails and blackfly. Protect young growth and inspect the edible buds so colonies do not become established among their tightly packed purple scales.
Diseases
The profile describes this cultivar as generally disease-free.