Foxy Tale

Foxgloves 2019

Each day I wander round the garden,
watering the planters
and deadheading wilting blooms
in an attempt to encourage the plants
to produce more flowers
instead of just going to seed.
The trimmings get deposited in the compost and in time will be used to help cultivate next years plants.








Last year we an abundance of glorious white foxgloves,
that I successfully grown from seed.
I love the ethereal plumes of flowers they produced.

In 2019 I ruthlessly uprooted any that were not white to avoid cross polination and maximise the chance of getting white flowers in the future.
With nurseries closed in the spring, this year I had to make do with what grew in our garden.
Therefore circumstances have required me to adopt rather less exacting standards
and rather than unceremoniously removing any foxgloves that betrayed a hint of pink
they have been allowed to remain.

However, when I was pottering in the garden

I noticed one of this years limited number of white foxgloves had met with disaster
and broken off at ground level.

I trimmed the stem, brought it inside
and put it in a vase on the kitchen window sill.
We watch as the flowers open.
As I look at it I am reminded of lockdown
and the restrictions on our movements.
We want to go off and have a normal summer, visit beaches and moors,
explore small towns,
visit houses and gardens,
but we have to wait,
stay close to home and watch the rest of the world through out our digital screens.

Meanwhile, there are a lot of baby foxglove plants appearing next to the shed
close to where the white ones were in 2019.
These small plants won't flower until next year.
Until then I will guard over and nurture them
When the time is right, transplant them to places where they can flourish.

Lockdown has taught us to treasure the small things in life right where we are,
like looking forward to beautiful flowers in our garden in 2021 -
regardless of colour!