Tall spikes of Acanthus mollis flowers in a city park

Acanthus mollis (Bear's Breeches)

Native to northwestern Africa and the central and eastern Mediterranean, this clumping herbaceous perennial reaches about 3 to 6 feet tall in flower. Its deeply lobed leaves inspired the Corinthian leaf motif in ancient Greek and Roman architecture. Tall spikes carry white flowers beneath purple-tinted hoods and among spiny bracts, opening from the bottom upward. It spreads through underground stems and can regrow from root fragments, making established colonies difficult to remove. It has naturalized in New Zealand and parts of southern Australia and is regarded as an environmental weed in New Zealand and Victoria, Australia. Photographed in Bogotá, Colombia and Quito, Ecuador.

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Multiple tall flower spikes of Acanthus mollis rising from a dense cluster of large, lobed green leaves in a shaded forest setting

Cluster of tall flowering spikes of Acanthus mollis with white and purple bracts rising above large glossy green leaves in front of a red brick wall

Acanthus Mollis white flowers on tall inflorescences

A bright sunny garden with purple and white acanthus mollis bracts and flowers

Spikes of Acanthus mollis flowers in front of foliage

Tall Acanthus mollis flower spikes bearing rows of white blossoms beneath purple-tinted bracts

Single tall inflorescence of Acanthus mollis with pale purple bracts and white tubular flowers standing above glossy green foliage in a shady garden

Close-up of a tall flower spike of Acanthus mollis with white tubular blooms and purple bracts emerging among large green ferns in a shaded garden

Pair of Acanthus mollis flower spikes rising above a dense green groundcover, with tubular white blooms and purple bracts in a sunlit garden

Tall flower spike of Acanthus mollis with white tubular blossoms and purple bracts growing in a shady garden area

Upright Acanthus mollis flower spike with white petals and purple bracts set against a vibrant green lawn in sunlight

White Acanthus mollis flowers hooded and by light reddish-purple bracts

White flowers and purplish bracts of a Bear's Breeches