One of the plants in our garden that gets by far the most attention in late July, is the sea holly ‘Big Blue’. Not only is it admired by our garden visitors and by us, but also by a myriad of pollinating insects.
Eryngium x zabelii ‘Big Blue’ blooms in late July with us, and the flowers last for a long time. The plant reaches about 75 cm and has silvery blue-green foliage. The beautiful, spiny bracts give the plant a ferocious appearance, but if it is non inviting to touch to us, it is definitely attractive to the pollinating insects, especially bumble bees. The bracts can be a bit prickly to the touch.
Eryngium x zabelii is a hybrid of Eryngium alpinum and Eryngium bourgatii, both of them beautiful garden worthy species, but this hybrid has really combined the best traits from both parents.
We grow our plants in full sun, in soil that is well drained. Our plants are only a few years old and have therefore not bulked up much yet, but fingers crossed it will happen in a few years.
After the first frost the spiny bracts take on a new life in the winter garden.
The Frozen Gardener 
beautiful plant
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