Foxglove (digitalis purpurea) is the flower of the hour in my Pacific Northwest garden, towering three feet above my close-to six-foot frame. (That’s height not width, for clarification and the time being.) Their show began three weeks ago and will likely continue for another two before the plants brown into equally handsome and imposing seed stalks. Later in the summer, I’ll toss the sand-fine seeds anywhere I’d like to see them sprout. The plant is tough as nails in the Northwest and does well in both sun and shade. Give them a cultivated garden bed and they will double in height.
Foxglove is a biennial, establishing foliage the first year and bursting in bloom the second. All parts of the plant are poisonous so kept them out of your salad spinner.
Sharing the stage, evergreen Western Sword Ferns ring my porch like a verdant fringe. They too are a low maintenance, deer-proof plant that’s easy to grow. Give them a little compost and they too will reach for the sky.
9 responses so far ↓
1 renae // Jun 29, 2010 at 10:58 pm
Did you know some people consider fox gloves invasive weeds? They’re crazy.
2 Celina // Jun 30, 2010 at 2:50 am
holy sakes (as my 2 year old would say:)! those are spectacular!
3 tasteofbeirut // Jun 30, 2010 at 5:25 am
These foxgloves are so beautiful!
4 Sustainable Eats // Jun 30, 2010 at 7:01 am
Oh how I love foxgloves! Someday I’ll have room for a real cottage garden without care for little boys eating poisonous things…
5 Sophie // Jun 30, 2010 at 12:01 pm
Waw!! Your flowers are looking great!!
I so love Fox gloves!! My father has them in his garden too!
6 Taylor // Jul 1, 2010 at 2:33 pm
Holy cats! Those are amazingly beautiful. I love Foxgloves, but I’ve never seen any that impressive.
7 June@Four Green Acres // Jul 7, 2010 at 6:47 pm
Tom! What a gardener you are! I have a gorgeous apricot foxglove that you MUST plant to coordinate with your perfect home. Shall I send seeds?
8 Tom // Jul 8, 2010 at 3:02 pm
June, I would love some seeds! The peach palace meets the apricot border. Su-weet!
9 Hollyhocks: Signal Summer’s Last Stand // Sep 13, 2010 at 4:04 pm
[...] rust. July showcases a robust adolescent, standing tall above the sword ferns, taking on the foxgloves in a race to touch the sky. August arrives with a floral flourish; plants dotted with color and [...]
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