Digitalis

"Foxglove" redirects here. For other uses, see Foxglove (disambiguation).
For the drug used to treat heart conditions, see Digoxin. For the foxglove-tree, which has similar-looking blooms, see Paulownia tomentosa.

Foxglove
Digitalis purpurea (Common foxglove)
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Lamiales
Family: Plantaginaceae
Tribe: Digitalideae
Genus: Digitalis
Tourn. ex L.[1]
Species

Over 20 species, see text:

Digitalis lutea
Pink common foxglove with bee

Digitalis (/ˌdɪdʒɪˈteɪlɪs/[2] or /ˌdɪdʒɪˈtælɪs/[3]) is a genus of about 20 species of herbaceous perennial plants, shrubs, and biennials, commonly called foxgloves.

Digitalis is native to Europe, Western Asia, and northwestern Africa. The flowers are tubular in shape, produced on a tall spike, and vary in colour with species, from purple to pink, white, and yellow. The name derives from the Latin word for "finger".[4] The genus was traditionally placed in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae, but phylogenetic research led taxonomists to move it to the Veronicaceae in 2001.[5] More recent phylogenetic work has placed it in the much enlarged family Plantaginaceae.

The best-known species is the common foxglove, Digitalis purpurea. This biennial is often grown as an ornamental plant due to its vivid flowers, which range in colour from various purple tints through pink and purely white. The flowers can also possess various marks and spottings. Other garden-worthy species include D. ferruginea, D. grandiflora, D. lutea, and D. parviflora.[6]

The term digitalis is also used for drug preparations that contain cardiac glycosides, particularly one called digoxin, extracted from various plants of this genus. Foxglove has medicinal uses but is also very toxic to humans and other animals, and consumption can even lead to death.[7]

  1. ^ "Digitalis Tourn. ex L." Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. 2017. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
  2. ^ Oxford English Dictionary: "Digitalis"
  3. ^ "Digitalis". Dictionary.com.
  4. ^ "Definition of DIGITALIS". www.merriam-webster.com. Retrieved 3 May 2024.
  5. ^ Olmstead, R. G.; de Pamphilis, C. W.; Wolfe, A. D.; Young, N. D.; Elisons, W. J.; Reeves, P. A. (2001). "Disintegration of the Scrophulariaceae". American Journal of Botany. 88 (2): 348–361. doi:10.2307/2657024. JSTOR 2657024. PMID 11222255. Retrieved 28 November 2020.
  6. ^ Brickell, Christopher, ed. (2008). The Royal Horticultural Society A-Z Encyclopedia of Garden Plants. Dorling Kindersley. p. 377. ISBN 9781405332965.
  7. ^ Trust, Woodland (7 January 2020). "Foxglove and other poisonous plants". Woodland Trust. Retrieved 1 June 2024.