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Eryngium giganteum
at Digging Dog
Miss Willmott’s Ghost
Sea Holly
Dynamic is a rare adjective to apply to a plant, but it’s the best we can think of to describe Eryngium. From its leathery lobed leaves to the spiny, decorative bracts that host the flower, the Sea Holly has a sense of movement that is up and out. Excellent in fresh or dried arrangements, the flowers are borne on tall, branching stems, and the terminal blooms hold their color while lateral flowers develop, until the entire stem is covered with mature blossoms.
Eryngiums love well drained soil in the open sun, and are an arresting addition to the mixed border, especially when planted amidst Rudbeckia, the Achilleas, and grasses. Eryngium giganteum 
Back in Victorian times, Miss Willmott was so enamored with this Eryngium that she secretly scattered its seeds in other people’s gardens. And once you’ve seen the flowers, you’ll wish she’d visited yours! Like some ornate Elizabethan ruff, the bracts—ghostly white, rigid and long-toothed—subtend exquisite, 4 in. silvery green flower cones. Supported by sturdy, widely branched stiff stems, the extraordinary blooms fade to buff, remaining decorative until frost above glossy basal leaves that are deeply heart-shaped and spineless.
Absolutely show stopping in the border or a container, alluring to bees and unparalleled as a dried flower, the magnificent Giant Sea Holly may not be long-lived, but endures by self-seeding.
Blooms July–September. Size: 3'–4' high x 2' wide; hardy to zone 5. Eryngium giganteum (P-1180)
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