This is actually a fascinating plant. It is a biennial herb. It’s got leafy stems that are NOT branched. The leaves are alternating and can be egg- to lance-shaped.
The flowers are pink to purple and can have deep purple spots. Those purple spots are called nectar guides. Bees and other pollinators use these as visual que’s to find the energy packed nectar.
This species is common in Washigton around roadsides, fields, and forest edges mostly at low elevation.
This plant is famous for its medicinal properties. Not a native species, it was introduced from Europe. IT CONTAINS CARDIAC GLYCOSIDES AND IS HIGHLY POISONOUS, AFFECTING MUSCLE TISSUE AND CIRCULATION!!!! The heart medicine Digitalis, derived from foxglove, is used today by hundreds of thousands of people suffering from heart disease.
One explanation for the name foxglove comes from the flowers looking like a perfect fit for a foxes paw. One entertaining story has it that a bad fairy gave the flowers to a fox to wear so he could steal silently around the chicken coop. Digitalis is from the Latin for “thimble.”
Photography by sapper11g
IPhone7
Location Washigton State
