Foxglove, Digitalis purpurea. This plant is attractive to bees, butterflies and/or birds. Average Water Needs; Water regularly; do not overwater. Self-sows freely; deadhead if you do not want volunteer seedlings next season. Other details: May be a noxious weed or invasive.
The bad news is that foxglove (Digitalis purpurea) does not occur as a perennial. It is a biennial, meaning that it has a 2-year life span. The plant forms a tight rosette at ground level the first year and then grows a flowering stem the second year. Then it dies. If you buy a foxglove plant from a nursery. you need to treat it as an annual. Warning: while that plant was dying, it was scattering its seeds.
Some varieties can grow quite tall, as high as 7 feet. Tubular flowers appear all the way up and around one side of the stem in early summer — or even later for a few varieties.
Family: Plantaginaceae
Genus: Digitalis (dig-ee-TAH-liss) (Info)
Species: purpurea (pur-PUR-ee-uh) (Info)
Category: Biennials
Height: 36-48 in. (90-120 cm)
Spacing: 18-24 in. (45-60 cm)
Hardiness:
USDA Zone 4a: to -34.4 °C (-30 °F)
USDA Zone 4b: to -31.6 °C (-25 °F)
USDA Zone 5a: to -28.8 °C (-20 °F)
USDA Zone 5b: to -26.1 °C (-15 °F)
USDA Zone 6a: to -23.3 °C (-10 °F)
USDA Zone 6b: to -20.5 °C (-5 °F)
USDA Zone 7a: to -17.7 °C (0 °F)
USDA Zone 7b: to -14.9 °C (5 °F)
USDA Zone 8a: to -12.2 °C (10 °F)
USDA Zone 8b: to -9.4 °C (15 °F)
Sun Exposure: Sun to Partial Shade
Danger: All parts of plant are poisonous if ingested
Bloom Color: Purple
Bloom Time: Late Spring/Early Summer
Foliage: Herbaceous Velvet/Fuzzy-Textured
Soil pH requirements: 6.1 to 6.5 (mildly acidic), 6.6 to 7.5 (neutral), 7.6 to 7.8 (mildly alkaline)
Patent Information: Non-patented
Propagation Methods: From seed; direct sow outdoors in fall. From seed; winter sow in vented containers, coldframe or unheated greenhouse. From seed; sow indoors before last frost. From seed; direct sow after last frost
Seed Collecting: Allow pods to dry on plant; break open to collect seeds. Allow seedheads to dry on plants; remove and collect seeds
Read more: http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/743/#ixzz3GpMN4Whv
