Digitalis purpurea Suttons Apricot - Foxglove

Digitalis purpurea Suttons Apricot, a beautiful selection if foxglove from the English seed company Suttons, is derived from the purple foxglove found in our woodlands. A lovely nickname for these long, tender and luminous pink-apricot bell-shaped flowers, tightly packed on tall flowering stems emerging from semi-shaded areas. This large hardy biennial, or perennial if the flowers are pruned before seed formation, is a must-have in any English or romantic style garden, as it is so easy to grow in moist soil.

The Foxglove Suttons Apricot is a recent cultivar derived from the Digitalis purpurea, a plant from the Plantaginaceae family.  It is a biennial to perennial herbaceous plant that develops a large rosette, 45 cm (18in) in diameter, with pubescent, dark green, serrated leaves that have a network of ridges on the underside. They are sometimes covered in light woolly hairs. In the second year, hollow but sturdy stems emerge from the rosette in May-June, reaching over 1 m (3ft) in height, bearing a very dense flower spike composed of numerous tightly packed tubular flowers that open from the bottom upwards. Each bell-shaped flower attracts a ballet of bees and bumblebees, tirelessly collecting nectar and pollen. Their colour is rare and especially captivating: a delicate washed-out apricot pink, more or less speckled and punctuated with purple. Foxgloves will surprise you by self-seeding wherever they please, although not always true to the mother plant.

Plant Foxglove Suttons Apricot in dappled sunlight or partial shade, in humus-rich and moist soil, alongside old roses or perennials with single flowers such as columbines, centaureas, astrantias or meadow rues. This robust variety, with its tall habit, will allow you to enjoy its flowering for a long time in a large pot on the patio.  Magnificent, as wild as it is romantic, this foxglove will also accompany perennial geraniums, heucheras, and feathery fern foliage in light woodlands. Make the most of this flower by creating sumptuous bouquets for your home.