Ornamental Cabbage White – Winter Bedding (Set of 3 or 6)

Ornamental cabbage white makes a bold rosette of ruffled leaves that colours up as the temperature drops.

This is decorative kale, Brassica oleracea, grown for its foliage rather than for the pot. Each plant forms a compact rosette around 20 to 35cm high and 25 to 30cm across, with a creamy white centre framed by greener outer leaves. The colour deepens after the first frosts, which is exactly when the rest of the garden has given up, and it holds through the coldest months down to about -15C.

Plant it in an open, sunny spot, or light shade, in pots, window boxes, baskets or the front of a bed, where it sits well beside winter pansies and violas. Watch for pigeons and slugs. In spring it runs up into a leggy yellow flower spike, at which point it has done its job and is pulled. Plants are supplied as established 1L rootballs grown peat free in Yorkshire. Although it is technically edible it is not grown for eating, and like kale it can cause stomach upset in dogs and cats if eaten in quantity.

Cultural Information

• Common Name: Ornamental cabbage, flowering kale
• Fully Grown Height and Spread: 20 to 35cm tall, 25 to 30cm across
• Growth Habit: Compact rosette
• Perfect For: Patio pots, containers, hanging baskets, window boxes and winter beds
• Foliage: Ruffled and decorative, colouring up in cold weather
• Flowering Time: Grown for its foliage. It runs up to a yellow flower spike in spring.
• Planting Position: Full sun or partial shade, and it grows well in patio pots and containers
• Soil Type: Moist but well drained, moderately fertile
• Hardiness: Fully hardy, down to about -15C
• Maintenance: Low. Watch for pigeons and slugs.
• Seasonal Interest: Autumn and winter
• Type: Winter bedding plant