Foxglove is a group of plants known for their flowers, which are shaped somewhat like fingers of a glove. Foxgloves are native to Europe, northern Africa, and western and central Asia. The leaves of the purple foxglove and the Grecian foxglove contain a powerful chemical used to make the drug digitalis. In rare cases, children and animals have died from this chemical after eating foxgloves. Physicians once used small amounts of digitalis to treat certain heart diseases.
Foxgloves grow from 2 to 5 feet (60 to 150 centimeters) tall. The long oval leaves grow along the stem. The bell-shaped flowers are purple, pink, lilac, yellow, or white—the deeper-colored ones more or less spotted. They grow in clusters along one side of the stem. The plants are biennials or short-lived perennials, usually dying after the second season. Growers should plant new foxglove seeds yearly.
