How to Grow Foxglove
Foxglove At a Glance
Difficulty
Moderate
Category
Flower
Sun Exposure
Partial Sun, Partial Shade
Frost Tolerance
Frost Hardy
Cold Hardiness
Survives to -29°C
Plant Family
Plantaginaceae
Growing Season
Cool Season
Plant Lifecycle
Biennial
How to Start It
★ Recommended for beginners
Sow in early summer, about 6 weeks after your last frost, for flowers the next year. Press the tiny seeds onto damp soil and do not cover them, since they need light to sprout. They come up in 14 to 21 days: thin them (pull the extras) so each plant has 30 cm of room.
Foxglove is a biennial: it makes a low clump of leaves the first year, then sends up tall spikes of bee-loved bells the second year, sets seed and dies. Leave a few spikes to drop their seed and new plants come up every year on their own.
When To Start
First chance to plant
30 Days Before Last Frost
Last chance to plant
60 Days Before First Frost
When should you plant Foxglove?
Your planting dates depend on your local climate. Sign up and add your location to unlock personalized dates.
Your Foxglove Planting Window
Start planting
May 15, 2026
Last chance
Sep 10, 2026
Your Foxglove Calendar
Set your location to turn these into exact dates and reminders.
Sow foxglove seeds on the soil surface for flowers next year
45 days after your last frost· every year
Enjoy foxglove spikes and leave some to drop seed
365 days after your last frost· every year· optional
Did you water your foxglove seedlings today? Keep the top of the soil damp until they are up and growing.
About 1 days after you plant it
Hi there! Foxglove seeds need light to sprout, so keep the soil surface damp and do not bury them.
About 30 days after you plant it
Good growing! Foxglove makes a leafy rosette this year and flowers the next, so leaves are the goal for now.
About 90 days after you plant it
Picking time may be here: check your foxglove.
About 120 days after you plant it
The Journey Ahead
Foxglove's Lifecycle
Seedling
Mature Plant
Seed Production
Step 2
Planting & Sprouting
Expect sprouts in 14–21 days
Growing Tips
- 1Foxgloves do best in part shade, with morning sun and shelter from hot afternoon sun.
- 2Plant them in loose soil with plenty of compost mixed in, like the floor of a forest.
- 3Water whenever the top few cm of soil are dry, since they wilt in dry soil.
- 4Spread compost around the plants each spring before the flower spikes rise.
- 5Tall spikes in windy spots may need a stake to stay upright.
- 6Pick slugs off the leaves by hand in the evening.
- 7Every part of foxglove is poisonous if eaten, so grow it away from where small children and pets play, and wear gloves when you handle it.
Seedling Phase
Step 3
Growth & Maturity
~120
Days to Maturity
120 cm
Mature Height
61 cm
Mature Width
Pests to Watch For
Diseases to Watch For
Mature Plant
Step 4
Harvesting
Harvest Window
45 days
When to Pick
Cut flowers before they fade
How to Harvest
- 1For a vase, cut a spike when the bottom third of its bells are open.
- 2Cut at the base of the spike with clean pruners, wearing gloves.
- 3After the main spike fades, cut it off and smaller side spikes often bloom.
- 4Leave 1 or 2 spikes on each plant to set seed, so new foxgloves come up next year.
- 5Wash your hands after handling the plants, and keep cut flowers out of reach of children and pets.
Step 5
Saving Seeds
How to Save Seeds
Foxgloves cross with other foxgloves of the same kind, so grow just one variety if you want it to stay true, and hybrid F1 seeds will not grow true. Once the flowers fade, leave the spike until the pods at the bottom turn brown and start to split. Wearing gloves, snip the spike over a paper bag and shake out the dust-fine seeds. Dry them for a few days, then store them labelled in a cool, dark, dry place, where they keep about 2 years.
Seed Production
Still have a question?
Ask your coach about your foxglove.
This page covers what we thought to write down. Your foxglove will do something it never mentions, and that is the day a coach beats a guide. Ask Coach Lumen one question right now, free, no account.
