Choosing a foxglove

Choosing a foxglove

Our buying guide

Contents

Modified the 2 October 2025  by Christine 6 min.

Also known as Lady’s Glove or Shepherd’s Glove, the Foxglove is sensational with its brightly coloured flowers inserted on long spikes. Known for its toxicity, there are about twenty species. Cross-breeding between Digitalis and Isoplexis has even led to the creation of Digiplexis. A plant for partial shade with summer flowering, Foxgloves are often grown as biennials, as their life cycle generally spans two years. The rosette of leaves develops in the first year, then it flowers in the second year, and finally dies after flowering. Some exceptions, such as Digitalis mertonensis and Digitalis ‘Glory of Roundway’, are part of the perennial plants and live for several years. Here are our tips for choosing a foxglove from the many varieties based on different criteria.

Also, discover our complete guide Foxgloves: sowing, planting, and maintenance

Difficulty

According to height

Ideal for cottage gardens or priest gardens, foxgloves are tall, upright young plants that bring rhythm and verticality to borders. Foxgloves can be classified into three height categories:

Small – between 50 cm and 1 m tall

It is worth noting that a large majority of foxgloves do not exceed 1 metre in height. For example, the small hybrid foxglove ‘Goldcrest’ does not exceed 50 cm in height, while Digitalis parviflora and grandiflora reach heights of 70 and 80 cm respectively, and the white foxglove ‘Alba’ reaches 1 metre at maturity.

Medium – between 1 m and 1.30 m tall

Next, species and varieties with heights ranging from 1 metre to 1.30 metres are rarer. With their upright and not overly wide habit, they are ideal for borders. For instance, Digitalis purpurea ‘Pam’s Choice’, ‘Camelot Rose’, and Digitalis ferruginea ‘Gigantea’ have a height of about 1.20 metres and do not exceed 40 to 50 cm in spread.

Large – minimum 1.40 m tall

Finally, Digitalis mertonensis ‘Summer King’ and the typical species of the purple foxglove are the tallest, reaching heights of 1.40 to 1.50 m, and even up to two metres!

height of foxglove, size of lady's glove

Digitalis obscura grandiflora ‘Goldcrest’, Digitalis ferruginea ‘Gigantea’ (photo Wikipedia) and Digitalis purpurea (photo NevitDilmen)

According to the colour of the flowers

Impressive with their tall, upright flower spikes, foxgloves offer us magnificent flowering in white, yellow, orange, pink, purple, and even brown. The shades are highly varied. Elegant and naturally styled, they appear so simple, yet upon closer inspection, one can observe small details within the flowers that add to their charm: some varieties are veined, while others are speckled with irregular dots or patches. Here’s an overview of the different colours available:

White-flowered Foxgloves

Digitalis purpurea ‘Alba’ and Digitalis purpurea ‘Snow Thimble’ produce flower spikes up to one metre tall bearing large white flowers measuring 5 cm.

Yellow and Orange-flowered Foxgloves

Pink and Purple-flowered Foxgloves

choosing foxglove according to flower colour, lady's glove colour

Digitalis purpurea ‘Alba’ (photo Ciar), Digitalis grandiflora and Digitalis x valinii ‘Berry Canary’

Brown-flowered Foxgloves

Digitalis parviflora and Digitalis ferruginea ‘Gigantea’ offer brown and golden blooms.

Two-tone Foxgloves

Multicoloured Foxgloves

multicoloured two-tone foxglove, lady's glove colour Digitalis parviflora (photo Peganum), Digitalis lanata and Digitalis x valinii ‘Illumination Flame'[/caption>

Discover other Digitalis - Foxglove

According to the shape of the flowers

The flowers of Foxglove have the unique characteristic of appearing all on the same side of their stem. The lower flowers always bloom first, followed progressively by those above. The corolla is tubular in shape, more or less wide, long and flared, or bell-shaped and globular.

foxglove flower shape

Digitalis lutea, Digitalis purpurea ‘Pam’s Split’ and Digitalis ferruginea ‘Gigantea’

  • Finally, there is one exception that is a true mystery of nature: the Purple Foxglove ‘Monstrosa’. It bears numerous tubular flowers in clusters along its flowering spikes, and curiously, it features at the end of each stem a huge, well-opened cup-shaped flower with serrated petals!
large flower foxglove, purple foxglove, original foxglove flower

Digitalis purpurea ‘Monstrosa’

According to the flowering period

Digitalis generally flowers in June/July. Some are earlier and already show their flowers in May, such as Digitalis purpurea ‘Camelot Rose’, ‘Pam’s Choice’ and ‘Alba’. For the varieties ‘Goldcrest’, ‘Spice Island’ and Digiplexis ‘Berry Canary’, ‘Illumination Flame’ and ‘Illumination Raspberry’, flowering can even extend until October.

According to the exposure

Most Digitalis are semi-shade plants, such as Digitalis grandiflora and Digitalis lutea. Some species and varieties can be grown in sunny but not scorching exposure, for example Digitalis mertonensis and Digiplexis ‘Illumination Raspberry’. If you are in a region south of the Loire, we recommend planting them in a location sheltered from the sun during the hottest hours of the day.

Digitalis exhibition, exhibition of Lady's glove

Digitalis x valinii ‘Illumination Raspberry’

According to pH and soil type

All neutral soils are suitable for Foxgloves, but they prefer acidic soils. Some can grow in dry, chalky soil: the woolly Foxgloves, Digitalis parviflora, lutea, grandiflora, obscura and Digitalis ferruginea ‘Gigantea’. They thrive in light, cool soil in summer that is rich in organic matter. To avoid promoting the appearance of fungal diseases, planting in heavy, clayey soil should be avoided.

According to hardiness

In general, foxgloves have good hardiness and can withstand temperatures down to -10/-15°C. The hardiest varieties can endure temperatures below -15°C: Digitalis ‘Goldcrest’, ‘Glory of Roundway’, Digitalis parviflora and grandiflora, as well as the woolly foxglove.

According to the use

use of foxglove, use of lady's glove

According to the life cycle: biennial or perennial

When talking about Foxglove, one often thinks of ‘biennial plant’, having a life cycle of two years, such as Digitalis lanata. However, be aware that there are also Foxgloves considered as perennial plants, despite their short lifespan (2 to 4 years). Among them, we can mention: Digitalis mertonensis, Digitalis lutea, Digitalis ‘Glory of Roundway’, Digitalis parviflora, Digitalis grandiflora, Digitalis ferruginea, Digitalis obscura and Digitalis obscura grandiflora ‘Goldcrest’. The Digitalis purpurea is biennial, but can also be perennial if the growing conditions are optimal: a sunny or slightly shaded position and acidic, well-drained soil.

To extend their lifespan by 2 or 3 years, it is essential to cut back the flower spikes as soon as they have faded. This will prevent seed production, which exhausts the plant, and encourage the emergence of new rosettes.

Foxgloves self-seed spontaneously and abundantly if planted in good conditions; however, the new plants may not be similar to the parent plant. You can also leave a few flowers on the plant if you wish to collect the seeds and sow them in buckets.

Feel free to discover Virginia’s favourite perennial Foxgloves!

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Choosing Foxgloves