Thank-you for your input! We have zebra swallowtails that go for the paw paws and spicebush swallowtails that go for the spicebushes and a scattering of the tiger swallowtails that seem ok w/the dogbane and another plant whose name escapes me but there were literally clouds of tigers when the thistle was everywhere....hoping to bring them back so I will get some Zizia seeds and try some C. discolor. We are overrun w/tulip poplars (my 8 yr old calls them tulip populars :) and I have a weakness for sassafras...though they don't seem to live very long around here. I will carry on the war against C. arvense...I shall not give in to tiger swallowtail temptation!

Thank you all! I don't actually plan to grow it; a friend wants to use it in her wedding flowers and asked for the name. Good to know it's possible to grow here in case I get inspired to plant it someday.

A history is of both types being considered examples of Cynara cardunculus. With there in fact having been non-artichoke named forms such as Cristopher Lloyd's Giant and 'Florist Cardy'. Both of which have been offered by Oregon vendors in the past. And the artichoke cultivars having been differentiated by being placed within the aforementioned Scolymus Group. As in C. cardunculus Scolymus Group 'Green Globe'. The way the kind shown and asked about here has the same leaf size from top to bottom is not like cardoon plants I usually see. So it may in fact be a specific named form - perhaps even a different species in the same genus, if any of those have the same general appearance at all. For instance C. baetica ssp. maroccana - I have no idea what this looks like but it has been offered by an Oregon retailer in the past.

Blue, my lawn is a very substantial 1.5 acres or so, a few years ago I said to myself I must reduce my workload and hire a company to fertilize and spray. It's a beautiful quality lawn, though had been so thickly congested with dandelions that when posting a photo of such on twitter, someone from the UK had commented "Here in the UK, we love our dandelions, but the amount you have there is truly disgusting!" LOL. The many frequent mowings to attempt to prevent seed out is much time and effort consumed especially considering the busy early gardening season at that time. Any earth that is not covered in mulch is without a doubt sown thick as hair on a dog's back with dandelion seedlings and the buggers get into the crowns of all perennials and in every single nook and cranny! I dislike the use of herbicides, but what I hate more is dandelions totally overtaking my plantings! I'm not sure if Par 3 or Curtail M that is used, but the stuff is nasty potent smelling! After the first few applications, the dandelions were so knocked out that now I only request spot sprays and last year no chemical had been applied at all ... oh, yes, the herbicide also kills Canada thistle. Krnuttle, I'll have to look for that long handled weeder, I have the short handled version and it's my go to digger!