I’ve only ever gardened in cities, and I’ve lived in them for more than half my life, but my rural roots show when it comes to foxgloves. They are steeped in the lore of Beatrix Potter illustrations and the first warm walks of the year down country lanes. Because they typically bloom in May, it’s rare to see a Chelsea flower show without any, and it’s here I’ve learned that these quintessential cottage garden flowers work just as well in contemporary urban gardens, where some varieties can be cajoled into a container and relish the part-shade often found in built-up areas.
When I first started gardening, I was baffled by the distinction between annuals and perennials, and ashamed to say so. For the uninitiated, annuals begin and end their lifecycle (growing from seed, flowering, setting seed and dying) in a year, while perennials return in subsequent years, sometimes bulking up or waning, depending on their longevity and the growing conditions. Then there are biennials, which complete their lifecycle over two years, and this is the group most foxgloves belong to. That means that if you want flowers next year, you’re nearing your last chance to sow them. They will put down roots and create a rosette of green leaves by Christmas, before sending up flower spikes, blooming and setting seeds next summer.
As anyone who is fortunate enough to have a crop of foxgloves in their garden can attest, these wildflowers can be particularly efficient self-seeders. When the conditions are right, they’ll set seed from late spring to late summer as their flowers go over. They particularly like the drifting, dappled shade of overhead trees, and these are the conditions you can emulate if you want to sow direct into the ground. For those who want to indulge in seed trays and tamping down, you can also grow foxgloves in pots and plant them in their for ever homes when they are bigger and it is cooler.
If you can’t be bothered to sow, you can order plants now to establish later this year. But before you do anything, it’s important to note that all parts of foxgloves are toxic (including stems and leaves), so they may not be the right choice for your garden if you have animals or small children.
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Whether you choose to buy plants or sow seeds, there is plenty of choice. I’m a sucker for Digitalis x mertonensis ‘Summer King’, a strawberry-hued beast that takes over the show from tulips wonderfully. D. ‘Martina’ is a brighter pink and happy in containers. Those who find the more traditional D. purpurea ‘Sutton’s Apricot’ or purple-middled ‘Pam’s Choice’ blousy may prefer D. ferruginea or D. parviflora, with flowers ranging from ochre to irresistibly tasteful rusty browns and oranges. Accessories for an altogether more discerning fox.