Globe Artichokes

01 About

Globe artichokes are one of the most architecturally beautiful and rewarding plants in the kitchen garden. The enormous silvery-grey thistle plants are spectacular all season, and the tender flower buds — boiled and dipped in butter — are a genuine luxury. They are perennials that establish slowly but then produce prolifically for five to ten years from a single planting, requiring almost no attention beyond cutting back and a winter mulch.

02 What to Grow

Globe artichokes divide into green types — large, meaty, and most widely grown in the UK — and purple types, which are smaller, more tender, and more ornamental. Green varieties such as Green Globe and Gros Vert de Laon are the most productive in British conditions. Purple types (Purple Globe, Violetto di Chioggia) have a more delicate flavour and are worth growing for variety and visual interest. Named varieties are always preferable to unnamed seed, which produces highly variable plants. Gros Vert de Laon and Violetto di Chioggia hold the RHS Award of Garden Merit.

03 Varieties

The number of varieties shown for each crop is based on UK consumption data (2025/26) — the more popular the crop, the more variety choices we include.

🟢 Green Varieties

Large, meaty, and most productive for UK conditions. The standard choice for kitchen gardeners wanting the best yield and flavour.

Green Globe

The classic globe artichoke and the most widely grown variety in the UK. Large, rounded heads with excellent flavour. Very productive once established. The benchmark green variety.

Green Globe Improved

An improved selection of Green Globe with better uniformity, larger heads, and stronger disease resistance. Slightly more vigorous than the original. The recommended choice for new plantings.

Gros Vert de Laon

Heritage French variety. Very large heads with outstanding flavour. Long-established in UK gardens. Prolific secondary bud production extends the harvest season well into August.

• AGM

💜 Purple & Heritage Varieties

Smaller, more tender, and more ornamental than green types. Excellent flavour; shorter cooking time. Worth growing alongside a green variety for diversity.

Purple Globe

Smaller, more tender buds than green varieties with a slightly nuttier, less bitter flavour. Very ornamental — stunning in flower if any buds are left to open. Good for small gardens.

Violetto di Chioggia

Italian heritage variety with elongated, deep purple buds. Particularly tender at the base. Mild, sweet flavour. Less productive than green types but outstanding quality.

• AGM

Romanesco

Large Italian variety with green-purple buds. Excellent flavour. Vigorous and productive. A good choice for gardeners who want larger heads with some purple character.

04 Where to Source

Globe artichoke offsets are available from specialist vegetable nurseries and some garden centres in April–May. Several mail-order suppliers offer named varieties as rooted offsets. Seed is available from most major suppliers — sow February–March indoors at 18°C. Established plants at allotment sites are a free and reliable source of offsets in spring — ask neighbours who grow them.

05 Planting Options

🌱 From Offsets (Recommended)

The fastest and most reliable method. Rooted offsets taken from established plants in April–May are planted directly into the permanent bed. Each offset should be 20–30cm tall with visible roots. Harvest begins from year two.

Suitable varieties: All named varieties. Offsets give identical plants to the parent and establish far faster than seed-raised plants.

From Offsets (Recommended) — regional timing

Region	Sow / plant	Harvest	Notes
Scotland & Far North	May	Jun–Jul	Offsets May
Northern England	Apr–May	Jun–Jul	Offsets Apr–May
Midlands & Wales	Apr–May	Jun–Aug	Offsets Apr–May
Ireland & Isle of Man	Apr–May	Jun–Aug	Offsets Apr–May
South & SE England	Apr–May	Jun–Sep	Offsets Apr–May
South Coast & SW	Apr	Jun–Sep	Offsets Apr

🌡️ From Seed (Indoors)

Slower than offsets — seed-raised plants take an extra year to establish. Sow individually in 9cm pots at 18°C from January to March. Harden off in May and plant out after last frost.

Suitable varieties: Green Globe and other seed-raised varieties.

From Seed (Indoors) — regional timing

Region	Sow / plant	Harvest	Notes
Scotland & Far North	Mar–Apr	Jun–Jul	Sow Mar–Apr indoors
Northern England	Feb–Apr	Jun–Jul	Sow Feb–Apr indoors
Midlands & Wales	Feb–Mar	Jun–Aug	Sow Feb–Mar indoors
Ireland & Isle of Man	Feb–Mar	Jun–Aug	Sow Feb–Mar indoors
South & SE England	Jan–Mar	Jun–Sep	Sow Jan–Mar indoors
South Coast & SW	Jan–Feb	Jun–Sep	Sow Jan–Feb indoors

06 Companion Planting

✅ Grow nearby

• 

  🌸 Borage

  Borage attracts beneficial insects and pollinators which help deter blackfly, the main artichoke pest. Plant nearby but not close enough to compete for space.

• 

  🌿 Tarragon

  French tarragon is a traditional companion for artichokes in French kitchen gardens. Claimed to improve the flavour of nearby crops.

• 

  🌻 Sunflowers

  Tall sunflowers provide a windbreak for artichoke crowns in exposed positions, reducing wind damage to the large architectural leaves.

❌ Keep apart

• 🥔 Potatoes — Both are hungry feeders; keep separate to avoid nutrient competition.
• 📏 Spacing — Artichokes need full 90cm–1.2m spacing to develop properly — avoid overcrowding.

07 Sowing — How To

Globe artichokes are established either from rooted offsets (fastest, harvest from year 2) or from seed sown indoors in January–March (slower, harvest from year 3). Offsets are strongly preferred for kitchen gardeners. Seed raising is worthwhile if you want multiple plants at low cost or cannot source offsets.

• 🌱 Offsets (Recommended) — Rooted side-shoots taken from established plants in April–May. Each offset should be 20–30cm tall with visible roots. Plant directly into the permanent bed. Harvest begins from year two.
• 🌡️ From Seed — Sow individually in 9cm pots at 18°C from January to March. Pot on once established, harden off in May, plant out after last frost. Takes an extra year to establish vs offsets.

1. 

   Source healthy offsets

   Select offsets 20–30cm tall with visible roots from an established plant. Each should be a complete rooted shoot. Reject offsets without roots or those that appear wilted.

2. 

   Prepare the bed

   Dig 45cm deep, incorporating two buckets of well-rotted compost or manure per plant. Artichokes are hungry feeders that will occupy this position for 10+ years.

3. 

   Plant at correct depth

   Set the offset 10cm below soil level. Firm thoroughly to eliminate air pockets. Water in well.

4. 

   Space at 90–120cm

   Allow at least 90cm between plants — 1.2m is better. Artichokes spread considerably by year two. Mark positions clearly.

5. 

   Water through year one

   Keep consistently moist throughout the first growing season while roots establish. Do not feed heavily in year one.

6. 

   Autumn cutback and mulch

   In November, cut foliage to the crown and mulch with 15–20cm of straw. Remove mulch in March and apply a balanced feed as new growth emerges.

08 Using a Propagator

Globe artichokes grown from seed need propagator warmth (18°C) for reliable germination. Sow January–March. Plants from seed take longer to establish than those from offsets and rarely produce a worthwhile harvest until year three.

Heated propagator

Sow seeds individually in 9cm pots in a heated propagator at 18°C. Germination in 14–21 days. Pot on to 1-litre pots once established and grow on in a frost-free greenhouse or cold frame before planting out in May–June.

Standard unheated propagator — A lidded seed tray traps warmth and humidity around germinating seeds without electricity. Performance depends entirely on room temperature — best placed on a warm windowsill and used from March onwards. Replace the lid promptly after watering. Remove it completely the moment seedlings emerge to prevent damping off.

1. 

   Sow in 9cm pots

   Sow one seed per 9cm pot at 1cm depth in seed compost. Set in heated propagator at 18°C.

2. 

   Germination

   Seeds germinate in 14–21 days at 18°C. Move to a bright frost-free windowsill or greenhouse immediately once seedlings emerge.

3. 

   Pot on

   Once two true leaves are visible, pot on into 1-litre pots of general-purpose compost. Grow on in a frost-free space until May.

4. 

   Harden off and plant

   Harden off over two weeks in May. Plant out after the last frost, 90cm–1.2m apart, in a rich, well-drained permanent bed.

Windowsill alternative: A bright south-facing windowsill can substitute from late February. Place a clear polythene bag loosely over the pot during germination. Remove immediately once seedlings appear.

09 Soil Requirements

pH

6.0–7.0

Best

Loam, Sandy loam

Tolerates

Clay loam

Avoid

Waterlogged, Heavy clay, Cold wet

10 Ongoing Care

🌱 Feed in Spring and Through Season

In spring as new growth emerges, apply a balanced granular fertiliser around each plant. From May, apply a liquid tomato fertiliser every two to three weeks through the growing season to maximise bud production.

💧 Water Deeply in Dry Spells

Established plants are moderately drought-tolerant but produce larger, more tender buds with consistent moisture. Water deeply once a week in dry spells. Avoid waterlogging — root rot is the main cause of plant loss.

✂️ Harvest Terminal Bud First

Harvest the central terminal bud first when it is plump and the scales are tight, before any purple shows at the tip. Cut with a 10–15cm stem. Side buds then develop on lateral shoots over the following 4–6 weeks — harvest these progressively.

🪴 Remove Excess Offsets

Each spring, plants produce offsets (rooted side-shoots) around the crown. Remove all but 2–3 of these to keep the plant productive. Excess offsets can be potted up and replanted or given away. Retaining too many offsets reduces bud size.

🌿 Cut Back After Last Harvest

After the last buds are harvested, cut all stems back to 30cm. In November, cut all top growth down to the crown before mulching for winter. Do not cut too early as the leaves continue feeding the plant through autumn.

🍂 Mulch Crowns for Winter

Apply a 15–20cm thick mulch of straw, compost, or bracken over the crown after cutting back in November. Secure with netting or horticultural fleece in cold areas. Remove in March before new growth emerges.

11 Watch Out For

🐛 Insects & pests

• 🐜 Aphids (Blackfly & Greenfly) — Curled, distorted, or stunted growing tips — aphids inject saliva that causes leaf curl to protect them
• 🐌 Slugs & Snails — Silver slime trails on leaves, soil, and pots — often the first sign before damage is found
• 🟢 Leafhopper — Pale papery cast skins (exuviae) dotted on the underside of leaves — the most characteristic sign

🍄 Diseases to watch

• 🩶 Botrytis (Grey Mould) — Botrytis cinerea (grey mould) is the most ubiquitous fungal pathogen in temperate gardens — present in virtually every garden soil and on plant debris. It becomes a disease only when conditions favour it: cool, humid, poorly ventilated environments with damaged or senescent plant tissue. In a greenhouse in autumn it can destroy an entire tomato or grape crop.

Full identification and treatment advice is in the Pests and Diseases sections.

12 Storage & Preserving

❄️ Refrigerator

Place unwashed heads in a plastic bag with a few drops of water in the vegetable drawer. The cut stem end can be wrapped in damp paper towel to delay browning. Best eaten within 3–5 days of harvest for finest flavour.

❄️ Frozen Hearts

Cook artichoke hearts until just tender, cool completely, and freeze in a single layer before bagging. Frozen hearts keep for up to 6 months and are excellent in pasta, risotto, and stews.

13 Expert Tips

14 Common Mistakes

15 See Also

• 🌼 Companion Planting
• 🥬 Celery
• 🌿 Florence Fennel
• 🥗 Salad Crops