Ornamental Cabbage Coloring Pages

They are leaves, not flowers!

Ornamental Cabbage is a plant that brightens up winter flower beds and doorways.
It looks like a rose or peony flower, but those colorful parts are actually leaves!
The leaves in the middle turn white, pink, or purple. Together with the green leaves around them, they look just like a big flower.
It got its Japanese name because it looks like a peony flower!

Part of the cabbage family

Ornamental Cabbage is in the same plant family as cabbage and broccoli.
It started as a vegetable called kale in Europe. It came to Japan long ago and people began growing it to enjoy how it looks.
Many types were created in Japan! There are types with curly leaves, round leaves, and deeply cut leaves.
The first coloring page shows the curly type!

It gets prettier as it gets colder

The middle leaves of Ornamental Cabbage get darker in color when the temperature drops.
That is why it looks its best in winter, when there are fewer other flowers around.
Its red and white colors are seen as lucky, so people often use it for New Year decorations.
When spring comes, a stem grows up from the middle and blooms with yellow flowers that look like canola flowers!

Ornamental Cabbage from Tokyo, Nagoya, and Osaka

Some types of Ornamental Cabbage grown in Japan are named after places.
There is "Tokyo Round-Leaf" with smooth leaf edges, "Nagoya Curly" with finely crinkled leaves, and "Osaka Round-Leaf" which is right in between.
Today, you can also find mini Ornamental Cabbage for small pots and tall ones made for flower arrangements!

When should you plant it?

You can find Ornamental Cabbage seedlings at flower shops and home centers from autumn to early winter.
If you plant it in a sunny spot, the cold will make its colors richer, and you can enjoy it all the way until spring!

Three coloring pages

There are 3 coloring pages to try.
The 1st page shows one Ornamental Cabbage drawn from a photo. You can see how the curly leaves overlap!
The 2nd page shows a potted planter at a doorway filled with Ornamental Cabbage and pansies.
The 3rd page is a detailed coloring page with lots of Ornamental Cabbage lined up in a winter park flower bed.
We also have coloring pages for other winter flowers like cyclamen and camellia!

Color the Center and Outside Differently

The trick to the Ornamental Cabbage is to clearly separate the colors between the center leaves and the outer green leaves.
Choose your favorite color for the center from white, pink, or purple.
If you make the outer leaves bluish-green, it will look just like a real one!

Darker Toward the Center

If you color the center leaves darker near the middle and lighter toward the outside, it will look like a softly blooming flower.
For a white Ornamental Cabbage, try adding light yellow or cream color just to the very middle.
Leave the leaf veins white or trace them with light yellow-green to make the leaf shapes stand out!

Group Planting and Flower Beds

In the second coloring page, color the plant pot brown or terracotta orange, and the pansies planted with it yellow or purple to make it look bright and pretty.
In the third coloring page, if you color the Ornamental Cabbage in white and purple one after the other, the flower bed pattern will pop out!
Color the flower bed bricks reddish-brown and the winter trees dark brown.

How to Color the Curly Leaves

For the curly edges of the leaves, move your colored pencil in small motions along the edges for a great result.
If you trace just the edges with a slightly darker color, the overlapping fluttery leaves will look very clear.
If you color one plant starting from the center and working your way out, the colors will blend beautifully.
Color the little bird on the tree branch in the third coloring page any color you like, such as yellow-green or brown!

Can You Eat It?

Ornamental Cabbage is a relative of the cabbage, but it is a plant grown for you to look at and enjoy.
Its leaves are hard and bitter, so people do not usually eat it.
The Ornamental Cabbage sold at flower shops might have plant medicine on it, so please do not eat it.

Dancing Ornamental Cabbage

If you keep growing it even after flowers bloom in spring, the stem will bend and stretch out, and small Ornamental Cabbage leaves will grow from the side buds.
It looks just like it is dancing, so it is called "Dancing Ornamental Cabbage," and people use it for flower arranging too.

A Winter Flower Pot Favorite

Ornamental Cabbage stays strong even in the cold, so it is perfect for winter flower pots.If you plant it together with pansies or violas, you can enjoy them for a long time all the way until spring.

Why Is It Red?

The purple and red colors of Ornamental Cabbage come from the same kind of natural color found in blueberries and red cabbage.
When it gets cold, the green color in the leaves fades away, and the hidden colors start to show.
White Ornamental Cabbage is a type that just has less of this color in it.