There are both biennial and perennial varieties of foxglove (Digitalis). I have grown and like both, but in my opinion the biennial varieties are much showier than the perennial varieties.
While some biennial variety seeds (Foxy) say they will bloom the first year, they did not bloom until the second year for me. The biennial foxgloves bloom start to bloom in early spring and will bloom into early summer with purplish pink flowers.
Foxglove prefers partial shade and will not do very well in hot climates if it doesn’t have shade in the afternoon. In my garden I plant them where they get morning sun and shade in the afternoon and they seem to be happy there.
The biennial foxglove often reseed where they are happy, but for me the flowers on the volunteer plants are never as showy as the ones I start from seeds. The blooms tend to be more light pink to white and are still very pretty, just not as vibrant as the ones started from seed. Depending on the variety planted foxgloves can vary in height from two feet to around five feet.
You can buy started plants and transplant them to your garden or grow foxglove from seed planted in the spring or fall. I like to wintersow many different kinds of seeds and foxglove is one that I have tried and had success with.
