How to Winterize Foxglove

Overview

Gardeners seeking a wildflower with tall, dramatic spikes often choose foxglove. Foxglove is a biennial wildflower that will self-sow readily in a growing area to adorn a flowerbed year after year. After the first season of establishment, look for tall floral spikes in a variety of different colors to bloom in the late spring and early summer in a sunny or partly sunny garden. A gardener doesn't need to do much to winterize foxglove, as this plant is a hardy volunteer for the flower garden.

Step 1

Leave the blooms on the plant during the summer after the foxglove is finished blooming to enable the plant to drop seeds for the next growing season.

Step 2

Cut back the stems to several inches above the soil level in the middle of autumn to clean up the growing area and prepare it for winter. By this time, the foxglove will have sown its seeds for the next growing season.

Step 3

Lay down approximately 2 inches of mulch over the root systems of the foxglove after cutting back the foliage.

Step 4

Remove the mulch the following spring when the weather warms slightly. Look for new shoots emerging from the soil around the area where the foxglove from last year was growing.