sowing foxgloves

i ve got some seed for chocolate foxgloves, what is best way to sow them [ i have no greenhouse or propagator, same Q for seeds for rare poppies

 

You could sow the foxgloves now. If you've room in the house put them in a seed tray with clingfilm on a windowsill until germinated, because of the cold. Or wait till march/ april to sow outside. The seeds are tiny as you know, I always mix with dry sand to get a bit of separation in the seedlings. I usually sow them in August/ September to be sure of flowering in the spring.
Poppies don't like to be disturbed once germinated so either sow them in little transplantable pots or wait til later to sow in situ. I have only grown Papaver somniferum and orientale, these germinate freely outside.
Good luck.

 

ty

 

As you probably know, Foxgloves, (Digitalis) D. purpurea and D. ferruginea usually flower in their second year so best to treat them as biennial. They may flower in the 3rd year as well if they are not allowed to set seed. Other species are given as perennial.

I don't have any specific information on the chocolate coloured variety but would treat them same as others. If you have the packet with the name on then you should be able to see if they are perennials

Foxgloves are normaly hardy and tollerate most soil types. Sow late spring/early summer in pots or trays of loamy compost keep moist but not waterlogged and transplant to position when big enough. You could also sow a bit earlier (April)if you raise them in a cold frame . Alternatively scatter seed and allow to naturalise. Ideal for inclusion for mid height in a cottage garden and will also tollerate filtered shade. In the wild they are typical woodland margin plants, they are one of our prettier 'weeds' that I normally encourage in the garden. Ingestion is unlikely but treat as poisonous (they are the source of several heart drugs including Digoxin)

Poppy seed is robust and very long lived and can lie dormant in the soil for many years(I've seen 100 years quoted!) and I know from experience that they will often turn up after digging old gardens and will flourish in any sunny position. I've seen them sold under various names such as Oriental Poppy, Ornamental Poppy or Peony Poppy but they are all related to the opium poppy Papaver somniferum. Treat as an annual and sow in early spring under cover (March) and transplant when just large enough handle. Alternatively, sow direct in late autumn (October)for flowering the following year. Treat as poisonous and avoid their sap for obvious reasons.

[ 01. February 2006, 11:35 AM: Message edited by: frogesque ]