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Acanthus mollis
Also called Bear's Breeches, Artist's Acanthus, Oak Leaf Bear's Breeches, Sea Dock, Bear´s Breech, Sea Holly
A clump-forming perennial with large glossy, deeply lobed leaves and tall purplish-white flower spikes in summer. It is grown in gardens for its striking foliage, but it spreads aggressively.
Acanthus mollis, commonly known as bear's breeches, sea dock, bear's foot plant, sea holly, gator plant or oyster plant, is a species of plant in the family Acanthaceae and is native to the Mediterranean region. It is a leafy, clump-forming perennial herb, with a rosette of relatively large, lobed or toothed leaves, and purplish and white flowers on an erect spike.
These plants are usually propagated from tubers and tend to form large, localized clumps which can survive for several decades and look statuesque when well-grown, but its suitability as a garden plant is lessened on account of its aggressive spread (new plants are produced readily both from seed and portions of root) and its susceptibility to attacks from slugs and snails.
Although native to the eastern and central Mediterranean, Acanthus mollis has spread throughout much of western Europe and certain parts of the Americas, Australia, Syria and New Zealand, where it is regarded as invasive.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Acanthus mollis by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
