Artichoke, Purple

This vegetable grows to 1.4-2 m (4.66.6 ft) tall, with arching, deeply lobed, silvery, glaucous-green leaves 50-82 cm (20-32 in) long. The flowers develop in a large head from an edible bud about 8-15 cm (3-6 in) diameter with numerous triangular scales; the individual florets are purple. The edible portions of the buds consist primarily of the fleshy lower portions of the involucral bracts and the base, known as the "heart"; the mass of immature florets in the center of the bud is called the "choke" or beard. These are inedible in older, larger flowers.