Digitalis purpurea Excelsior Group

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foxglove Excelsior Group

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Synonyms

Digitalis 'Excelsior'
Digitalis 'Excelsior Hybrids'

Plants for pollinators
Annual Biennial Herbaceous Perennial Roses
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A semi-evergreen biennial or short-lived perennial, to 200cm high in flower, with a basal rosette of hairy green leaves. Tall spikes of tubular, orchid-shaped purple, pink, creamy-yellow or white flowers with spotted maroon-red or purple throats are produced in late spring through to July

Position

Full sun, Partial shade

Soil Types

Chalk, Clay, Loam, Sand

Max Height

1.5-2.5 metres

Max Spread

0.5-1 metres

Size

Time to Maturity
1–2 years
Max Spread
0.5-1 metres
Max Height
1.5-2.5 metres

Growing Conditions

Chalk Clay Loam Sand
Moisture
Moist but well–drained or Well–drained
pH
Acid or Alkaline or Neutral

Position

Full sun Partial shade
Aspect
East–facing or South–facing or West–facing
Exposure
Exposed or Sheltered
Hardiness

Hardiness Ratings

All ratings refer to the UK growing conditions unless otherwise stated. Minimum temperature ranges (in degrees C) are shown in brackets

  • H1A: under glass all year (>15C)
  • H1B: can be grown outside in the summer (10 - 15)
  • H1C: can be grown outside in the summer (5 - 10)
  • H2: tolerant of low temperatures, but not surviving being frozen (1 to 5)
  • H3: hardy in coastal and relatively mild parts of the UK (-5 to 1)
  • H4: hardy through most of the UK (-10 to -5)
  • H5: hardy in most places throughout the UK even in severe winters (-15 to -10)
  • H6: hardy in all of UK and northern Europe (-20 to -15)
  • H7: hardy in the severest European continental climates (< -20)
H7

Colour & Scent

Season Stem Flower Foliage Fruit
Spring
Summer
Autumn
Winter

Botanical Details

Family
Plantaginaceae
Native to GB/Ireland
No
Foliage
Semi evergreen
Habit
Columnar upright
Potentially harmful
TOXIC if eaten. Wear gloves and other protective equipment when handling TOXIC to pets - see the HTA guide to potentially harmful plants for further information and useful contact numbers
Genus
Digitalis can be biennials or usually short-lived perennials forming a rosette of simple leaves with bell-shaped flowers in slender, erect, usually one-sided racemes
Name Status
Accepted

How to Grow

Cultivation

Prefers fertile, moist, humus-rich soil, but will grow in most garden situations including full sun. Will flower in its first year from an early sowing. See foxglove cultivation for further advice

Propagation

Propagate by seed, sown in pots in a cold frame in late spring for flowering the following year. Seeds sown in January, in a protected environment at 15-18°C, may produce flowers in late summer of the first year

Suggested planting locations and garden types

  • City and courtyard gardens
  • Cottage and informal garden
  • Wildlife gardens
  • Flower borders and beds
  • Wall side borders

Pruning

Deadhead to encourage more flowers

Pests

May be susceptible to aphids and leaf and bud eelworm

Diseases

May be susceptible to powdery mildews, downy mildews and leaf spot