Echinops ritro
Echinops ritro
Echinops ritro
Echinops ritro
Echinops ritro
Echinops ritro
Echinops ritro
Echinops ritro
Echinops ritro
Echinops ritro
Echinops ritro
Echinops ritro
Echinops ritro
Echinops ritro
Blue Globe Thistle
I am very disappointed. Carefully planted in my garden in November, no flower. I still see the two or three leaves but nothing else.
Nathalie, 29/08/2025
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We guarantee the quality of our plants for a full growing cycle, and will replace at our expense any plant that fails to recover under normal climatic and planting conditions.
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Description
Echinops ritro or Globe thistle is a hardy perennial, particularly suited to dry soils. Its jagged and thorny foliage is green with silvery reflections, and provides a beautiful backdrop for its numerous small ball-shaped flowers of a particularly vibrant blue. This wild-looking ensemble adds a touch of natural beauty throughout the summer season in sunny borders. It actively contributes to garden life by attracting bees and complements dried flower arrrangements with its silver touch.
Belonging to the family of Asteraceae, this Blue Globe Thistle grows spontaneously in Eastern Europe and in parts of the Mediterranean region in uncultivated areas and garrigues. It thrives in the sun, appreciates heat, and tolerates dry and even rocky and limestone soils. Undemanding, it is also hardy and can self-seed. It is therefore a useful plant for holiday homes with minimum maintenance required, but will also appeal to those who love its simplicity and authenticity.
Echinops ritro is an herbaceous perennial with channelled and ramified stems that can reach a height of 1 m (3ft). They bear deciduous leaves, with a leathery appearance, of a green colour tinged with grey-blue. They are alternate, sessile, and embracing. Their lamina is deeply cut, the edges are thorny, and the underside is tomentose. At the top are multiple small balls, 4 to 5 cm (2in) in diameter. These perfect spheres are best observed up close to perceive their subtlety and delicacy. Initially bluish-green, they appear to be made up of multiple points at the beginning of flowering. They then open up and reveal tiny tubular star-shaped flowers in a steely blue colour, sometimes approaching violet. Packed tightly together, they form a cloud of small spheres that brings lightness to borders.
Echinops ritro is a versatile companion. It is suitable for both wild and rustic spaces, but its silhouette, foliage, and flowers are also well-suited to striking contemporary or mineral garden designs. Its colour palette easily harmonises with all pastel shades and blends well with Lavateras, Gauras, and Achilleas. Artemisias, Lychnis, and Euphorbias will echo its silver nuances.
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Echinops ritro in pictures
Flowering
Foliage
Plant habit
Botanical data
Echinops
ritro
Asteraceae
Blue Globe Thistle
Mediterranean
Planting and care
The Blue Globe Thistle is quite adaptable. Preferably plant it in full sun in a dry, even rocky, soil. It tolerates limestone soils. If your soil is more moist or heavier, make sure it is well-drained and mix the substrate with gravel when planting. The flowers can be cut and dried to make long-lasting bouquets. If the climate and location suit it, it will tend to self-seed and may sometimes become invasive.
Planting period
Intended location
Care
Planting & care advice
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Hardiness is the lowest winter temperature a plant can endure without suffering serious damage or even dying. However, hardiness is affected by location (a sheltered area, such as a patio), protection (winter cover) and soil type (hardiness is improved by well-drained soil).
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In temperate climates, pruning of spring-flowering shrubs (forsythia, spireas, etc.) should be done just after flowering.
Pruning of summer-flowering shrubs (Indian Lilac, Perovskia, etc.) can be done in winter or spring.
In cold regions as well as with frost-sensitive plants, avoid pruning too early when severe frosts may still occur.
The harvesting period indicated on our website applies to countries and regions in USDA zone 8 (France, England, Ireland, the Netherlands).
In colder areas (Scandinavia, Poland, Austria...) fruit and vegetable harvests are likely to be delayed by 3-4 weeks.
In warmer areas (Italy, Spain, Greece, etc.), harvesting will probably take place earlier, depending on weather conditions.
The sowing periods indicated on our website apply to countries and regions within USDA Zone 8 (France, UK, Ireland, Netherlands).
In colder areas (Scandinavia, Poland, Austria...), delay any outdoor sowing by 3-4 weeks, or sow under glass.
In warmer climes (Italy, Spain, Greece, etc.), bring outdoor sowing forward by a few weeks.
The planting period indicated on our website applies to regions in USDA Zone 9a (East Coast and Midlands: Dublin, Wexford, Waterford, Kilkenny, Portlaoise). It will vary depending on where you live:
- On the west coast and in the north-west (Galway, Limerick, Sligo, Donegal, Westport), delay planting by 1 to 2 weeks in spring and bring it forward by 1 to 2 weeks in autumn compared to the dates given, preferably choosing periods without strong winds.
- In the inland hills and plateaus (Wicklow Mountains, Macgillycuddy’s Reeks, Connemara, Killarney), it is best to plant in spring (April–May) or autumn (September–October), avoiding periods of waterlogged soil in winter and strong winds, which pose the main risk to newly planted trees in these areas.
The flowering period indicated on our website applies to regions in USDA Zone 9a, such as the East Coast and Midlands, including Dublin, Wexford, Waterford, Kilkenny and Portlaoise.
This will vary depending on where you live:
- On the west coast and in the northwest (Galway, Limerick, Sligo, Donegal and Westport), it will be delayed by one to two weeks compared to the given dates, due to stronger Atlantic winds and less spring sunshine.
- In the inland hills and plateaus (the Wicklow Mountains, the Macgillycuddy's Reeks, Connemara and Killarney), flowering will be delayed by two to three weeks. Flowering mainly occurs between May and July, with the limiting factors being less frost and more of the excessive humidity, strong winds and lack of sunshine that are characteristic of these areas.