Flowers - Foxglove

Foxglove is either an ever-green perennial or a biennial - I'm not sure! This is because they self-seed, and I don't know if a particular plant will flower in subsequent years. These flowered in May and June. The flowers can be a variety of shades of pink or white.

The seedlings appear in summer or autumn. They are low clusters of leaves. They look very similar to alkanet, a weed, which can cause problems! But the leaves are smooth, while alkanet's leaves are bristly. Also foxglove plants have a sensible root system, while alkanet has a single tap root (going down a long way for a big plant!) You can transplant foxglove seedlings easily, if they are growing in a silly place (such as the vegetable garden...) The seedling over-winters, then starts growing a flower spike in early summer, the next year. This has flower buds on it. It gets taller (and taller) and the flowers start opening from the bottom, gradually. This type of flower opening means that the flowers last a long time, as flowers open, blossom, then die, and then the next flowers do the same. They end up looking ridiculous! (But I like that.) Once all flowers have died, leave them until the flower stalk is dead too, and the seeds not only formed, but dried. They may drop of their own accord, or you can rub the seed pod where you want next year's flowers.

I love foxgloves! I'm not sure whether they started in my garden from a packet of seed, or whether they arrived of their own accord. But they certainly took over the garden this year (2020) and I was delighted!

It's a nice idea that the flowers make gloves for foxes! But it may come from "Folk's gloves" meaning gloves for the fairies. (Or it may not...)

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