Unlocking the Secrets of Cardoon - A Must-Grow Edible for Your Garden

Join me to discover the incredible Cardoon - not only is this a must-grow edible plant for your garden or food forest, its also a perennial vegetable that will come back year after year, and is closely related to artichoke. In this video we'll watch the plants grow from seed to harvest and discover the amazing uses this plant has along the way - from chop and drop, to attracting pollinators, cooking and eating the cardoon leaf stalks, and admiring the stunning ornamental beauty that they add to an edible landscape! Cardoon (Cynara cardunculus) originates from the western and central Mediterranean region, where it was cultivated in ancient times and still grows wild today. In Italian and Spanish, it's known as "Cardo." In French, it's referred to as "Cardon." Wild cardoons have more thorns to protect against animals and harsh environments, while the cultivated varieties grown by gardeners have fewer thorns for easier cultivation. They have become invasive in some regions, so it's good to check that before you grow them and/or manage responsibly. These are fairly hardy and I grow them as a perennial plant since my climate is suitable for that, however they can also be grown as an annual in colder regions. There's so much to love about the incredible Cardoon, so I hope you enjoy watching and finding out more :) Buy me a coffee to help support me channel :) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/thekiwig... References: https://link.springer.com/article/10.... https://agronomy.it/index.php/agro/ar... https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/arti... Come Say Hi! Instagram -   / thekiwigrower   Facebook -   / thekiwigrower   TikTok -   / thekiwigrower   SUBSCRIBE HERE - https://bit.ly/2S1G9T2 VIDEO SUGGESTIONS FOR YOU: 4 Delicious Fruits You Can Grow In A Container Or Small Space -    • 4 Delicious Fruits You Can Grow In A Conta...   7 Ways To Eat & Use Sunflowers That Will Surprise You! -    • 7 Ways To Eat & Use Sunflowers That Will S...   Growing A No-Dig Garden From Start to Finish -    • Growing a NO DIG Garden from START TO FINI...   Books I've enjoyed and found helpful: Grafting and Budding: A Practical Guide for Fruit and Nut Plants and Ornamentals From Amazon - https://amzn.to/3iniYQa From Fishpond (NZ & Australia etc.) - http://www.fishpond.co.nz/product_inf..." target="_blank The Food Forest Handbook: Design and Manage a Home-Scale Perennial Polyculture Garden https://amzn.to/3imbZHo ✅ Grow on YouTube with this tool - https://www.tubebuddy.com/thekiwigrower 🎵 Get Music to use on YouTube here - https://www.epidemicsound.com/referra... Hi, I'm Kalem, and this channel features all sorts of unusual and exotic fruiting plants with tips of how to successfully grow them. I'm interested in all things gardening and love growing my own food and all types of edible plants. I live on a 2 acre piece of land in New Zealand where we are turning a grass paddock into and abundant, edible paradise and food forest! So come along on this journey with me as I experiment with growing, and try to push the limits of what I can grow. I'll share with you my successes and failures so hopefully you'll learn from them and have a go yourself! Come learn with me and Subscribe to join this awesome community :) 0:00 Intro 0:39 Planting Cardon seeds 1:26 Cardoon seedlings and planting out 2:07 Cardoon growth over Winter 2:18 How to eat Cardoon 3:25 Harvesting Cardoon 4:08 Cardoon as mulch - Chop & Drop 4:33 Cooking Cardoon 8:17 What else is Cardoon good for? 9:57 Cardoon flowers 11:30 Cardoons annual cycle begins again 11:48 Cardoon seed heads 12:00 Other cool uses for Cardoons Disclaimer - Some of the links above may be affiliate links where I earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you - Thank you for your support! As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Business inquires: [email protected]