There's something really rewarding about cupping your hand under an old foxglove flower, tapping it gently and collecting the seeds that cascade out of it.
There's something really rewarding about cupping your hand under an old foxglove flower, tapping it gently and collecting the seeds that cascade out of it.
It must be something like collecting coins from a slot machine when you've hit the jackpot. Not that I've ever had this good fortune, but when you're gardening, free seeds are always a jackpot.
Foxgloves (Digitalis purpurea) produce seeds by the thousand. A few years ago I planted several of them in my shady border, but since then they've self-seeded readily. Once they've flowered, the seed heads ripen and split, scattering their contents onto the soil below. I've rested pots of compost around them to catch the seed in the past, or it can just be collected by hand.
Freshly sown foxglove seeds germinate easily, like mustard and cress, so I always sow them straight away. Just sprinkle onto the surface of moist compost, and don't cover them. The seedlings are tiny, so let them grow to a manageable size before pricking them out.
Left to their own devices, it's surprising how far they spread. Foxglove seedlings pop up all over my garden each year, and I transplant most back to their original source in my shady border. Clearly they're eager to spread far and wide, and who could complain about that? They're a wonderful biennial, so are naturally short-lived, but lending a hand with their propagation ensures they'll be around to be enjoyed for many years to come.
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