''Digitalis'' × ''fulva'', the strawberry foxglove, is a hybrid species of

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed with ...

within the family

Plantaginaceae Plantaginaceae, the plantain family or veronica family, is a large, diverse family (biology), family of flowering plants in the order Lamiales that includes common flowers such as Antirrhinum, snapdragon and Digitalis, foxglove. It is unrelated ...

. It is a naturally occurring fertile

hybrid Hybrid may refer to: Science * Hybrid (biology), an offspring resulting from cross-breeding ** Hybrid grape, grape varieties produced by cross-breeding two ''Vitis'' species ** Hybridity, the property of a hybrid plant which is a union of two diff ...

between the species ''

Digitalis grandiflora ''Digitalis grandiflora'', the yellow foxglove, big-flowered foxglove, or large yellow foxglove, is a species of flowering plant in the genus ''Digitalis'', family Plantaginaceae (formerly Scrophulariaceae). It is native to southern Europe and As ...

'' and ''

Digitalis purpurea ''Digitalis purpurea'', the foxglove or common foxglove, is a toxic species of flowering plant in the plantain family Plantaginaceae, native to and widespread throughout most of temperate Europe. It has also naturalized in parts of North Ame ...

''. The species is widely marketed in the UK under the common name of strawberry foxglove or its taxonomic synonym ''Digitalis'' × ''mertonensis.'' The species has been used to produce various

cultivars A cultivar is a kind of cultivated plant that people have selected for desired traits and which retains those traits when propagated. Methods used to propagate cultivars include division, root and stem cuttings, offsets, grafting, tissue cult ...

and has gained the

Royal Horticultural Society The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), founded in 1804 as the Horticultural Society of London, is the UK's leading gardening charity. The RHS promotes horticulture through its five gardens at Wisley (Surrey), Hyde Hall (Essex), Harlow Carr ...

Award of Garden Merit The Award of Garden Merit (AGM) is a long-established award for plants by the British Royal Horticultural Society (RHS). It is based on assessment of the plants' performance under UK growing conditions. It includes the full range of cultivated p ...

Description

This

perennial In horticulture, the term perennial ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the year") is used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. It has thus been defined as a plant that lives more than 2 years. The term is also ...

herbaceous plant Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennials, and nearly all annuals and biennials. Definitions of "herb" and "herbaceous" The fourth edition o ...

reaches an average a height of . The erect stems rise from a semi-

evergreen In botany, an evergreen is a plant which has Leaf, foliage that remains green and functional throughout the year. This contrasts with deciduous plants, which lose their foliage completely during the winter or dry season. Consisting of many diffe ...

basal rosette of soft leaves. It has typical tall spikes of large tubular flowers. The colour ranges from strawberry pink (hence the common name) to mauve. The flowering period extends from late spring to early summer. It prefers neutral or mildly acidic substrate and rich, moist and regularly watered soil, in full sun or in partial shade.

Distribution and habitat

''Digitalis'' × ''fulva'' has a native distribution within

Central Europe Central Europe is a geographical region of Europe between Eastern Europe, Eastern, Southern Europe, Southern, Western Europe, Western and Northern Europe, Northern Europe. Central Europe is known for its cultural diversity; however, countries in ...

, where it can be found naturally occurring in countries such as Austria and Germany. This hybrid species has also expanded its range after being introduced into Great Britain.

References

External links

Biolib

BBC Plant Finder
fulva Hybrid plants {{Plantaginaceae-stub