Oh - in that case I think you were probably eating artichokes in Paris, not lily shoots. I did not realise this was not a picture of the actual vegetable. Was it served cold in a vinaigrette? Here is a link that might be useful: Artichoke vinaigrette

Thanks. That is a relief. I find it strange that the leaf drop happened suddenly - practically one day. Jane

I think I might be on the right track because I just found this reference. "Horticultural selection within the species Brassica oleracea (wild cabbage) has led to the development of hundreds of cultivars that are now organized into eight major groups of vegetables: The acephala group includes kale, collards, flowering (ornamental) kale and cabbage, cole and borecale. The alboglabra group includes Chinese kale and Chinese broccoli, vegetables cooked as pot herbs in Asia and rarely seen in the US. The botrytis group includes broccoli and cauliflower. The capitata group includes green, red and Savoy cabbage. The gemmifera group includes Brussels sprouts. The gongylodes group includes kohlrabi. The italica group includes Italian broccoli, ASPARAGUS BROCCOLI, sprouting broccoli, cape broccoli and purple cauliflower. These are similar to broccoli and cauliflower except that the flower buds are not condensed into compact, solid heads. They are rarely found in the US. The tronchuda group includes tronchuda kale and cabbage, Portuguese kale and cabbage, and braganza. These are small, cabbage-like plants with broad fleshy petioles and midribs, but lacking compact heads. They are especially popular in Portugal. " The link is below. Here is a link that might be useful: The wonderful world of cabbage

LOL Dcarch. I notice no matter how frugal I am, I tend to open my wallet more willingly when I become a tourist. I bet the local businesses know that too! :-) Oh, the cost of labor is part of the reason for high cost foods in Hawaii. Not sure about now... when I was taking school break back in 1992, I took on a job working at Zippy's, a local fast food place. The US minimum wage was $4.25 an hour. I was paid $7.5 an hour to just buff tables and sweep the floor! I am sure kids who picked bananas and coconut were paid $7.5 an hour as well. When you add that labor cost onto a banana or that coconut, fruits that could be picked off a tree for free become almost unaffordable in the market. Sharon, I have seen people trying to grow Papaya tree in a pot but they don't usually grow that great. Not sure if the tree requires bigger roots or the fact that papaya trees are tall with nothing else to balance its weight. The tree won't grow much and fruits are usually very small. Now that I live in Canada :-( I would love to be able to grow ANYTHING! Nine months of winter in Calgary, not the best place on earth for farming, really! Al