Happiness is...

finding out your foxglove seedlings have overwintered:

 

The first time that's ever happened for me in my zone 5 garden!  You might remember I went to a lot of trouble last fall to mulch them in hopes I could get them to survive.  I put up this little fence:

and stuffed it full of aspen leaves.  To keep the leaves in place, I secured netting over the top of them using landscape stakes.  I decided yesterday that it was finally safe to remove the netting and the leaf mulch and that's when I discovered the foxglove seedlings.  Unfortunately the healthy looking foxglove 'Mertonensis' pictured above was not one of the ones that made it.  There must be something else I'm doing wrong since foxgloves (including 'Mertonensis') are supposed to be hardy to zone 4?  Anyone have any suggestions??  The smaller 'Purpurea' seedlings are the ones that pulled thru. Oh well.  Although I'd love to have 'Mertonensis' in my garden I am very happy to have self sown foxgloves (of any kind) for the first time ever!  Happy Earth Day! 

Comments

[Marnie]

A couple of mine survived my 5a/4b winter. They do well in certain places and not others. Not in mine.
Marnie

[tina]

I wish I could give you some tips. Frances has good luck with foxgloves. I had two or three over winter here for the first time too. It is a happy happy thing.

[Catherine/gardenerprogress]

You know it's strange here that none of my foxgloves came back. I usually always have a lot of seedlings each spring and this year, none. I hope the ones that survived will bloom and give you new seedlings for next year.

[Joy]

Kathleen !!!! Mine did too and I am flabbergasted !! ... I think this is a sign that this year is going to be one heck of a garden year girl ! Congratulations too !
Joy : )

[Racquel]

Hooray for self-sown foxgloves surviving the winter! Wish I could tell you the secret, but I don't know. Sorry! Happy Earth Day Kathleen. :)

[Beckie]

Hooray! Happiness is found in the garden so many times. Either that or we are just easliy pleased. :)

[cindee]

Yay for you! I don't have luck with them if I plant them in the ground for some reason. The ones I have in pots are doing great! I might have picked off the seed heads though before so I might try planting them in the ground again!!! I am happy some of yours made it!

[Victoria]

Nice. I have foxglove seedlings started. Love those flowers.

[Shady Gardener]

Kathleen, I have not one clue as to how to overwinter Foxglove. I believe they're biennial... the one time I had a plant (aren't they gorgeous?), it didn't grow back for year #2. I cannot even get delphinium to overwinter... hmph! ;-)