Useful information

Decorative foxglove

This plant with the shape of its drooping bell-shaped flower really resembles a thimble. Foxglove leaves are large, collected in a rosette. In summer, a peduncle appears from the center of the rosette, covered with many graceful flowers of interesting colors, while the lower lip is speckled inside, like in some types of orchids. Foxglove looks very beautiful in a garden or flower garden when planted in large groups.

Among the foxgloves there are both annuals and biennials, perennials. Florists most often prefer purple foxglove. (Digitalis purpurea). It is a perennial, but it is usually grown as a biennial. Purple foxglove with large wrinkled leaves is a very decorative plant, at the same time unpretentious and blooming for a long time. There are several spectacular garden forms and varieties of purple foxglove of different heights (60-150 cm) and with a variety of colors of large flowers - white, cream, yellow, pink, red, purple.

Purple digitalis (Digitalis purpurea)Woolly foxglove (Digitalis lanata)

And here is another type of this plant - woolly foxglove (Digitalis lanata), unlike the previous species, it has completely nondescript flowers. But both species - and foxglove purple, and foxglove woolly - have medicinal properties and have long been used in medicine to treat cardiovascular diseases. However, it is impossible to try to treat foxglove on your own in any case, you need to know that all parts of this plant, if used incorrectly, can be very dangerous.

Digitalis ciliated (Digitalis ciliata) - a short perennial (about half a meter) with leathery leaves and medium-sized creamy flowers - in gardens and flower beds is still rare, although it is very decorative.

Ciliated digitalis (Digitalis ciliata)Large-flowered foxglove (Digitalis grandiflora)Rusty foxglove (Digitalis ferruginea)

Foxglove large-flowered (Digitalis grandiflora) - perennial, it is very similar to the previous species, but blooms more effectively.

Foxglove rusty (Digitalis ferruginea) - a perennial, very variable species with a high peduncle (about 2 m) and numerous, but medium-sized flowers.

Foxgloves most often begin to bloom in the second year, but it happens that they bloom already in the first year. Almost all types of foxgloves are distinguished by long summer flowering, about 2 months. Therefore, some species are grown as annuals. Low-growing varieties of foxglove are used for spring forcing in pots.

Growing digitalis

Lighting... Foxgloves love sunny areas, but they also tolerate partial shade.

The soil... Light, fertile, permeable, but moderately moist soil suits them best. Although they can practically take root anywhere, they will not be intimidated by any type of soil.

Foxglove reproduction

Purple digitalis (Digitalis purpurea)

The foxglove is propagated by seeds. The seeds ripen at the end of summer, there are many of them, they are placed in boxes. To get full-fledged seeds, it is better to take boxes from the bottom of the peduncle, they are tied from the first flowers.

Foxglove seeds, although small, sprout easily and amicably. Therefore, you do not need to grow seedlings from them, it is better to sow directly into the ground. The main thing is not to rush to sow them too early, otherwise by the fall large rosettes of leaves will grow, which can dry out in winter.

June is a good time to plant foxglove. Sow them in rows on the garden bed, but sparsely, leaving gaps and lightly sprinkling with soil. Crops can be covered with covering material to retain moisture.

Do not be surprised if the foxglove seedlings develop very slowly at first. For this plant, such a course of development is normal. Too frequent shoots of foxglove, which interfere with each other's development, need to be pulled out in time or, when they grow up, simply planted in order to get full-fledged plants.

The grown seedlings dive, and in the fall the grown rosettes of foxglove leaves are planted in a permanent place, giving each outlet space: the distance between the plants should be at least 25 cm.

Care... In hot and dry weather, the foxglove needs watering. In autumn, the exposed foxglove roots are sprinkled with soil.

"Ural gardener", No. 41, 2019

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