What to do with foxgloves now, and what to put in their place

My foxgloves are well and truly over, but I was wondering how to deal with them now:
- am I right in thinking if I save seeds and replant them (or let them self-sow), I won't get flowers until the year after next?
- are the seeds ready for harvesting now?
- after taking seeds, should I remove the whole dead plants including the roots, or am I supposed to cut them at the base and they re-grow?
I am very new to this so a bit lost!
I was also wondering what might work in their place now.
The flower bed has light, but limited direct sunshine on it as it's quite near some tall trees - part-shade I suppose. It is somewhat moist at times - not dry/sandy. I am in central England.
I was wondering if I could put nemesia plug plants in there? Or maybe argyranthemum plug plants, snap dragon, leucanthemum, verbena? So many of the plants I have seem to say 'full sun' on the label for growing conditions, so I wonder if there is something else that would work there.
Many thanks!

 

Hi @Pink678.
Those seed pods look ready, in fact if you merely move the stalk the seeds will fall. You can shake them over that bed or collect them and sow into trays. There will be hundreds of seeds on each plant! At this time of year, I would think any new plants won’t be mature enough to be ready to flower next year, so yes it will be a two year wait, in my experience. As for pulling up the plants, they will pull out easily. They won’t re/grow from those stems so can be all pulled out.

If you just fancy some annuals to fill the gap- try some Begonias or Impatiens (they don’t mind shade). If you would prefer something perennial - maybe try a hardy geranium like Rozanne. I have some under my apple tree, so mostly in shade and they do well all Summer.

I’m sure others will have ideas too.

 

You can do either - collect seed and sow, or let them seed around. Or both!
I often sow some seed in trays or pots, and then I can place them in sites wher I'd like them.
The old plants will just die back , and can easily be pulled out, as @AuntyRach says.
I usually don't bother putting anything else in, but if you have them in a spot where you want more colour etc, annuals will be fine. The only problem is the time of year - you'd have to have some already growing, or be able to pick up some at GCs or similar, so there won't be as much choice. If you had any perennials which could be split or moved, you could do that, depending on what they are.
Geraniums are very easy in that regard, and would work well in future if you have more foxgloves growing too. I use things like Heucheras for gaps almost anywhere, and Ajuga would also be fine, although it can get a wee bit vigorous. easy to pull out though.

 

Another vote for hardy geraniums.
After they've finished flowering you can cut them back, give them a good watering and new growth will appear. You may get a few flowers as well.
There should be a selection available in a GC, and there are specialist nurseries online if you would like more choice.

A search for hardy geraniums for shade will bring up lots of options. Kashmir white or White Ness are 2 good ones .

 

Thank you so much AuntyRach, fairygirl and AnniD for the advice.

I will go ahead and clear up the old spikes and pull them out completely (with gloves on!), and I'll collect the seeds first too.

I will have a look in garden centres to see if they have the geraniums, they sound really good.

I'll also keep in mind Begonias, Impatiens, Heucheras, and Ajuga.

I'm looking forward to having that area tidied up now and looking a bit neater!

 

Geraniums are one of the easiest plants to source, and if you want an even bigger range, there are many good online nurseries as well.
There are things like Alchemilla mollis too, which will grow in almost any site, but it can also be very vigorous, so always keep that in mind. Many plants that are good ground cover, or are for filling smaller spaces near shrubs/trees, can be a bit invasive as they do the job too well! Vinca is another [several types] but has the advantage of being evergreen too, which might be useful. Hellebores will possibly be fine there as well.
I use Pachysandra for areas of shade, and that's evergreen with small white flowers. Very easy, and isn't invasive like some others. You may not find that readily in a GC though.

You also have to bear in mind that the soil there might be drier in summer, but wetter in winter, even with the surrounding trees/shrubs etc, and many plants may not cope well with that, but experimenting is always good, and gardening is like that a lot of the time.
It's always about getting the plants well established so that they can cope in future too. I think you'd need plants which don't necessarily need full sun there - they'll tend to lean a lot if they're not getting adequate light, and I don't know what direction the site faces, so anything that will grow in semi shade should be fine. That's why hardy geraniums are so good. You can couple them with spring bulbs too,which gives a good succession of colour. It's a common solution, but it's because it works very well.

 

Thank you so much fairygirl!
I have made a note of the other plants you mentioned too, for when I am touring around the garden centres. As you say I can always get some geraniums or others online if I don't have any luck.
It's east facing, but there are tall trees the other side so direct sunlight is pretty limited there, even though it is reasonably bright. It is as you say, a bit wet in the winter there but drier in summer.
I love the idea of hardy geraniums with spring bulbs in there too. I wonder what kind of spring bulbs would work well in there ...

 

There's loads of plants which will do well there, but I'd be here all day thinking of them and writing them down! The ones I mentioned were just off the top of my head, and things I've used in that kind of site many times. It isn't a huge area, so you wouldn't need a lot of plants if you opt for permanent planting rather than annuals. I also have Convallaria [lily of the valley] in that aspect, but some people find it invasive, and some find it doesn't grow for them well at all. I also grow Iberis [perennial candytuft] in that aspect, and native primulas are always good as long as they don't get too dried out for too long. There's quite a lot of primuals that will be fine, and the drumstick kinds would give a bit of height.

Almost any spring bulb would be fine, apart from tulips as they need a decent level of sun. The small daffs, crocus and snowdrops will all work, and the dying foliage would be hidden by emerging geraniums if you use those. Pale colours are always good in shadier spots too - so creams, white and lilacs are good, and crocus come in those colours. Plenty of daffs in paler colours too, although the small ones generally tend to be brighter, but you could also try some of the later ones in there anyway. I grew Pueblo last year which is about a foot, and is creamy.
Just take a look at reliable bulb suppliers online for various ideas - but re mortgage your house first....

 

My foxgloves grown from seeds look marvellous this year. I have around 24 plants and I don't want to damage them over winter.
What do you think?
Should I plant some of them into the garden soon, or should I keep them in the greenhouse for planting out next Spring?

 

They are hardy. I never have mine in the greenhouse, I plant them out. I ususally just scatter seeds in beds outside then move them if they are in the wrong place or thin them out. I don't know if slugs like them as I have hedgehogs.

 

Yes - just plant them now. Totally hardy

If I sow them in pots/trays, they're left outside all the time - never protected in any way.
They won't all germinate/survive, but that's why there are thousands of seeds on a single plant.

You're basically trying to replicate what naturally happens, so any seed would be sown any time through summer, depending on the variety and when it finishes flowering. They'll either thrive and grow, or they won't, because all sorts of things can affect that, just as it does in nature, hence the large amount of seeds.
There aren't any greenhouses in the outside world

 

Thank you for all the lovely ideas @fairygirl, I've added the new ones to my list to look for. I'll have fun at the garden centre roaming around, and if that doesn't work then I'll look online.
I just love snowdrops so I might have to splash out on a few, I can't resist really . Some little mini daffodils would be nice scattered around there too, in paler colours, I'll keep a look out.

 

@lizzie27 and @fairygirl I tried several times to get them seeded in my garden, but no success.
I have now 24 healthy looking plants in the greenhouse. I will start planting half of them and keep the others as reserve.
It's not the hardiness of the winter that worries me. It's about the condition that we get in our wind alley and slugs and snails.

 

They're perfectly fine in windy areas. It's always windy here, regardless of having as much shelter as I can manage. The whole garden would be permanently dark if I added any more shelter!
They also wouldn't survive here if they were vulnerable to slugs. They'll get some damage, many of mine get some, but that's perfectly normal - no plant is 100% perfect all year round, year in year out. Unless those are some sort of new, dodgy strain, that isn't hardy or something, they need to be acclimatised and grown on outside.
It also isn't helpful to keep over protecting and cosseting plants. It just makes them weaker, and therefore more likely to succumb to any pests/diseases and weather.
Those need to be outside so that they can toughen up before autumn/winter. Some will do better than others, and some will fail completely, but that happens with all sorts of plants.