- Type: cabbage
- Flowering Period: June, July, August, September
- Height: 20-130cm
- Color: White, Purple
- Perennial
- Winters
- Sun loving
- Loving
If you have never heard of ornamental cabbage, then, having seen a photo of this culture, you might think that these are some of the most beautiful flowers that are in no way inferior to the queen of flowers - the rose. Ornamental cabbage has rightfully become an adornment of gardens and historical parks of European cities. If you want to create something really unusual and very beautiful in your garden, try creating a flower bed where this plant dominates. Ornamental cabbage on the flowerbed looks royal, especially if you correctly organize its location.
Wild cabbage, which later became decorative, was grown as a forage crop in Ancient Greece, but its bright beautiful leaves, so reminiscent of flower petals, attracted the attention of gardeners, and the cabbage gradually became an ornament of gardens, courtyards and vegetable gardens.
Decorative cabbage can be compared with a rose with its beauty, and the external resemblance is evident here, but the time of its heyday is the end of summer. When roses bloom, your garden can be no less beautiful if you like this plant
Your flowerbed will find its beauty by the end of summer, when the leaves of cabbage are full of bright colors - pink, pale yellow, purple, burgundy. Even one such plant can decorate a small tub or flowerpot, and if you create a flower bed out of them, you can enjoy it endlessly.
The light frosts that occur in September are not a hindrance to this plant, its colors only become more saturated and the cabbage retains its charm until the first cold weather.
To create such a flower bed, plants of two colors are planted in rows in a checkerboard pattern. It is easy to plant cabbage - seedlings are strong, large, usually taken well
You can create beautiful flowerbeds with the help of decorative cabbage by planting it in waves, rows, round-shaped - in any case, you will get a beautiful and unusual flowerbed
Varieties of decorative cabbage for the garden
Varieties of this culture are conditionally divided into two groups: plants with a loose head, similar to exotic flowers, and plants that do not form a head. Japanese gardeners did a lot of plant breeding of the first group, therefore the names of the varieties are mainly Japanese - "Tokyo", "Osaka", "Nagoya". Plants of the second group can reach 120 cm in height, and there are low-growing varieties - 20-30 cm high. Leaves of graceful shape grow along the entire length of the stem, they can be removed if desired, and the cabbage will resemble a rose on the stem. When buying a particular variety, think about what you want to create with it.
Varieties of cut type are very interesting, if you remove the lower leaves, they will turn into beautiful flowers on a sturdy stem, from which you can create a composition on a flower bed or put in a vase at home
Compositions in flowerpots, pots and containers
A rose-like "flower" of cabbage in a flowerpot, wooden tub or large ceramic pot will decorate a resting place, a barbecue area, place two flowerpots symmetrically by the track and it will look elegant and solemn.
The original garden composition is a decorative cabbage in a wooden barrel. You can place it anywhere, most importantly, that the plant has enough sun
Depending on the size of the container, it is possible to plant one or several plants of the same color or several colors. You can combine cabbage with other plants - it goes well with ivy, begonia with small flowers and leaves.
Along the path, at the benches, containers for paved areas can be arranged by planting decorative cabbage in them. Plants in pots and flowerpots need good watering and top dressing, ideally they should be watered every other day, and such care can be provided only if you constantly live in the house or in the country.
Plants of the same color planted in a ceramic pot go well with decorative grass. After the onset of cold weather, the pot can be brought into the house where the cabbage will bloom for a long time
Ornamental cabbage can even be used to create a vertical flowerbed. To do this, you need to buy a special container in several tiers and small containers for planting plants, although it is difficult to create such a flower bed yourself
Examples of flower beds
As already mentioned, cabbage looks especially luxurious by the end of summer and autumn, so that seedlings can be immediately not planted on a flower bed, but grown in another place. But by the end of summer, you can plant this beauty in your front flower bed, plant it in flowerpots and tubs. This plant tolerates the transplant quite well, make sure that the roots are wrapped in a solid clod of earth, which will protect them from damage, and after transplanting, water it well.
During the season, cabbage can be transplanted even several times. It is recommended to plant cabbage at a certain distance from each other, as over time, it grows. Cabbage grows well in the sun, although partial shade also suits it.
A nice composition in a flowerpot of an original form, you can also arrange a flowerbed using varieties without a head of cabbage to form a stem
An example of creating a beautiful flowerbed of cabbage and begonias of white and pink flowers. You can use different garden flowers, cabbage grows well with many plants
Decorative cabbage planted by the path, repeating its bends, transforms the garden into a magical corner. Use plants for a border, a framework for a flower bed, creating amazing examples of garden design
Since the time when cabbage is especially good is autumn, it can be combined with autumn flowers. A flower bed with multi-colored asters framed by cabbage "flowers" will look beautiful. In autumn, when the time of summer flowers is over, you can plant a border of ornamental cabbage in their place, it will delight you before the onset of cold weather, and when it gets really cold, you can cut the cabbage and put it in a vase at home, it can stand for about a month, keeping its beauty and freshness.
