Just don't get them in your poppy seed dressing.

Most of the foxgloves are biennial so in order to have them continue from year to year you hope at least some reseed. The strawberry one is suppose to be perennial but has never lasted for more then one year of bloom for me. Grandiflora and Carillon are both perennial but don't have as big and showy of flowers as the biennial ones do. Mine do self seed but not to an extent that it is ever a problem. I think they are so beautiful that they pretty much get to stay wherever they want in my garden!

I read that you need to wash your clothes and gloves and tools after working with foxgloves. I knew nothing of this when I planted the first one I have, the strawberry one. Shouldn't these plants come with some type of warning? Some people get really sick from these.

As far as I can tell they are not invasive here in Virginia, but they are in California and Oregon. I am getting ready to add two more plants I just got in the mail so maybe they will bloom next year when the other one quits, if it quits. We shall see.


Susie, the Department of Agriculture has listed this hardy in zone 4-9.

Thanks! I'm not worried about the safety. I've grown these and never had trouble. I used to deadhead them with my fingers. They didn't hurt me at all.

I am going to be looking for some of the hybrid foxgloves. It would be great to expand my color and variety. I love them. They are a native flower that I encourage. I try to strategically place seeded stalks, but they often have a mind of their own. This year some came up between the pavers in my patio. I love the way it self sews in my yard yearly.

Strange to hear about some people's adverse affects. Neither my family or any of our many long lived pets have ever suffered from growing it. None of the animals have shown the slighest interest in eating it either.

In previous times the leaves of the digitalis plant was used in tea form as an herbal remedy for strengthening and slowing the heart beat. Today Digitalis (orginally derived from the plant) is a medication prescribed to certain heart patients. Unless you have an allergy/sensitivity to the plant I can't imagine having a problem with it.

Having gardened for 40+ years the hype about poisonous plants that has taken root in recent years certainly amazes me. I was reading the other day about the toxicity of garlic. I love garlic
some of our natives on the way to work
volunteer in my woodland garden

Jewell - Nice plants! I hope mine look half as good.

I'm with you, Jewell. If we all paid attention to the hype about toxicity in plants, we'd have the 'scorched earth' look. If it bugs you, stay away from it, as in nettles.

Susan , the Dept. of Agriculture never came and visited my garden! : Actually my sister, who lives in a suburb of Minneapolis, (zone 4) has had a very difficult time keeping them over. I think because we usually have such heavy snow cover for insulation is the only reason I can have them here.

They are poisonous if you eat stuff from them, they cause your heart to beat to fast which stops it. They do use it in heart medicine but they have tested it to know the amount that is beneficial not detrimental.

People have been growing it for centuries without a problem so I'm not gonna eat any part of it but I'm gonna keep growing them.

They always exaggerate anyway, if they say hardy to zone 4 they are stretching it.

They exaggerate everything. I wish there were plant tags that told how much heat and humidity plants can tolerate too.

They would exaggerate that too! LOL

You're probably right. Someone should start a website with accurate information. Do the plant entries on Allthingsplants have accurate zone info or is it what is on the plant tags?

Anyone can edit the information. I got my information from nurseries and growers not plant tags. Mainly Google searches. Sometimes I get different, conflicting,information so I just average it out and stay well within the boundaries. If something said hardy to zone 8 then I don't buy it because that would be the edge of my zone. I want zone 7 plants so if and when we dip down lower than normal I will not loose plants. Also on the flip side like heat tolerant plants, I want stuff that is hardy to zone 9 so when our thermometer rises higher than normal my stuff is still ok. So you would want heat tolerance to zone 8 and cold hardy to zone 6 and you should be safe and if you use tags or internet you should still be ok, most of the time.....I think.

I always think some plants are worth the gamble. If I only bought plants for zone 3 I wouldn't have much growing in my garden. I wouldn't buy a fifty dollar plant that said hardy for zone 6 but I might buy a fifteen dollar plant that said hardy for zone 5. I win some and lose some and I don't even have to go to the casino!

We could all just plant annuals and start over with a clean slate every year. LOL.

I do not even have to go out of my zone to loose plants. I loose plenty and they are all for zone 8 or better, I lost all my zone 8 plants last winter and it did not even get that cold here, we had a very mild winter.The big problem was rot, we get a lot of rain. I don't mind because I got most of them on a coop and they were dirt cheap, that is when I try new things. And talk about gambling, I have hostas! I love hostas, but most need a good cold spell, and it gets a bit tricky. Every year I loose at least 20 plants but every year I add at least 20 so it works out and I don't spend a lot of money on plants that need a good cold spell because that is the gamble here.

As long as I can get Foxgloves for 3.00 each then I will add a few every year, no problem.

Clint, maybe we should just pretend they are annuals so then we will be surprised when they come back. LOL.

Susie, I thought people up north do a lot of planting in pots so they can bring them inside during the winter? Do you do that, I have done that with tropical's but I don't like to.

I Love Foxgloves My gardens in Va were full of them. I grew a few from old seeds this year just so I have
more mature plants for next season. You have got to try Pam's Split really different . I have Dalmation , Pam's Split ,Apricot
and a yellow one growing for now :)

I have never had a problem with them getting me sick I dead head and pull leaves sometimes with no gloves. Maybe acts different
with other people.

I'll plant them by the window. Maybe if a robber breaks in they will be allergic to it!