Ornamental kale and cabbage were bred entirely for their visual presence rather than for the table, though they are technically edible should curiosity take over. Grown as biennials treated as annuals, they form wide rosettes of crinkled, wavy leaves reaching 1 to 2 feet tall and wide, in shades running from white and cream through rose and red to deep purple. The key to their performance is cold: planted in fall, their coloring intensifies markedly as temperatures drop below 50 degrees, so what arrives at the nursery as a modest green mound gradually reveals itself through autumn.

They prefer full sun and amended, well-drained soil, and should be transplanted as the weather cools rather than started from seed unless a cool environment can be maintained to prevent premature bolting. They are cold tolerant to 5 degrees F, which makes them reliable well into winter in many climates. Mass plantings in borders, along walkways, or in containers give the most satisfying effect — a succession of rosettes shifting color through the season as a garden winds down. In their second year they produce clusters of small yellow flowers, but by then the ornamental moment has passed.