Sea holly

You know that old saw about plants -- "thrives on neglect"? It must have been created for sea holly. It does best in poor soil with little water and baked conditions. Yet it has striking flowers, an interesting prickly texture, excellent drought- and deer-resistance, and even salt-tolerance. Plants form taproots, so they are difficult to transplant once established, but starting new ones from seed is easy. Remove spent flowers to prevent excess self-seeding.

Light:

Sun

Zones:

2-10

Plant Type:

Perennial

Plant Height:

1-6 feet tall

Plant Width:

1-3 feet wide

Landscape Uses:

Containers,Beds & Borders

Special Features:

Flowers,Winter Interest,Cut Flowers,Dried Flowers,Drought Tolerant,Deer Resistant,Easy to Grow

Top Varieties

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Alpine sea holly

Eryngium alpinum has deeply serrated bracts (petals) surrounding a central cone, giving the flower a lacy appearance. It grows 3 feet tall. Zones 5-8
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Amethyst sea holly

Eryngium amethystinum is the hardiest species. It bears purple-blue flowers on plants 2-1/2 feet tall. Zones 2-10
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Flat sea holly

Eryngium planum has silver-blue flowers on plants 2-3 feet tall. Its leaves are scalloped rather than spiny. Zones 5-10
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'Miss Willmott's ghost'

Eryngium giganteum gets its name from its dramatic ghostly gray-green to silvery blue flowers on plants up to 6 feet tall. Also sometimes called giant sea holly. Zones 5-10
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'Rattlesnake-master'

Eryngium yuccifolium is a native of the Great Plains. It is a stately plant that reaches 4-5 feet tall and bears silvery white balls on spiny foliage that resembles that of yucca. Extracts of the plant were used by Native Americans as medicine. Zones 4-8
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Sapphire Blue sea holly

Eryngium 'Sapphire Blue', also sometimes sold as 'Jos Eijking', is a sterile variety that does not self-sow. Zones 5-9
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Garden Plans

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Large Summer Sunny Border
Garden Plan to Soften a Fence
Beautiful Blues Garden Plan
Easy Street-Side Garden Plan

Plant It With

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Yarrow

The silvery foliage of yarrow combines beautifully with that of sea holly. Yellow flowered forms look especially attractive with the purplish blooms of sea holly.

Artemisia

The striking upright mounds of sea holly look great surrounded by soft, silvery white artemisia foliage.

Daylily

Daylily is another tough-as-nails plant to grow with sea holly in inhospitable sunny sites. Choose from the many colors available to coordinate with lavender sea holly.

Propagation

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Seed