Planting Cardoon
Cardoon is a cool season vegetable in the Asteraceae family. Getting the timing right is the difference between a strong stand and a disappointing one, so the windows below are given relative to your own last spring frost and first fall frost rather than a generic calendar date. Look up your local frost dates and count back or forward from there.
Cardoon is started indoors 6–8 weeks before your last spring frost date, giving seedlings a head start before they move outside.
Transplant young plants outdoors 1–2 weeks after your last frost, once the danger of frost has passed.
Cardoon can be grown by starting indoors and transplanting. Starting indoors gives the longest, most controlled season, while direct sowing is simplest where the season is long enough.
Spacing and Planting Depth
Give Cardoon room to mature. The figures below come from verified extension and seed-supplier data for typical varieties.
| Spacing in row | 18 inches |
|---|---|
| Row spacing | 36 inches |
| Plants per sq ft | 0.22 |
| Planting depth | 0.25 inches |
| Sun requirement | Full sun |
Plan a square-foot bed with Cardoon →
Calculate plants in a bed for Cardoon →
Days to Maturity
Cardoon reaches maturity in 120–150 days from transplant.
Cardoon is ready to harvest after about 135 days. Harvest before summer heat or, for fall crops, before a hard freeze, to keep quality high.
Conditions and Care
As a cool-season vegetable, Cardoon does its best growing in the cooler weather of spring and fall and tends to bolt or turn bitter in summer heat. It is half-hardy — it withstands light frost but should be protected from a hard freeze.
Cardoon needs full sun — give it at least six hours of direct light a day for the best growth and flavor. Sow seed about 0.25 inches deep — small seed is sown shallow and barely covered, then keep the soil evenly moist until seedlings establish.
Cardoon belongs to the Asteraceae family; rotating where you grow members of this family each year helps limit the build-up of soil-borne pests and disease. Cardoon is generally grown as a single planting each season rather than succession sown.
See Cardoon in the full planting calendar for your ZIP →
Plan crop rotation for Asteraceae →
Growing Notes
Relative of artichoke grown for edible stalks.
Related Crops
Other crops you might grow alongside or instead of Cardoon.
In the same family
Cardoon is in the Asteraceae family. Other Asteraceae crops in the Gardenable database:
Similar growing requirements
Crops with similar season and time to maturity — useful if you want a diverse garden on a similar schedule: